Frozen Sands
by Kiteria
Summary: Three ninja from the Village Hidden Beneath the Ice head towards Konoha for the Chuunin Exams. Kimiko is the host to a tailed beast much like two others we know of. What happens when she runs into one when they first arrive in the village and has to face the other in the ring? Read and find out. Rated M for violence. OCxCharacter pairing. Read to find out who. Please R&R.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: As was requested of me, here is a new story. This will not effect my writing my other stories as well. Please read and review, much love.

* * *

-No one-

Three ninja from a village far from the Leaf or Sand villages are running under the cover of night. The only thing visible of the three were their eyes, and the pure white wolf pelt hanging off the shoulders of the one leading them.

"Can't we rest? Just a little bit?"

One of the two boys following the one in the front asked. His soft, smooth voice disrupting the peaceful silence of the forest around the three. He was young, as were all of them. Barely even 16 he was still one of the top three deadliest ninja in his village. The other two top three ninja were the two he was currently traveling with.

"Yuichi, we just stopped for an hour long rest not even five minutes ago."

The one in front said in a clearly feminine voice. It was soft, but had an edge to it that most people took as hostility when in reality it was only cautiousness.

"But Kimiko…."

Yuichi whined, but stopped when Kimiko suddenly appeared right infront of him, her arms crossed over her chest and crystal blue eyes narrowed. He was so shocked that he lost his balance and started to fall from the tree tops they had been running across. He screamed in surprise as he fell backwards towards the ground.

* * *

-Kimiko-

I sighed before reaching out and grabbing hold of Yui's arm and pulling him back up so he was on his feet.

"Oh man, thanks Kimi."

Yui said and I shook my head at him before smiling down at my friend.

"I still can't understand how you're tired when you've barely done anything."

I said as I sat down on the tree branch we were all standing on.

"I'm sorry Kimi, I didn't get a lot of sleep last night."

He said and I sighed at him.

"Why not? You went to sleep before Yuji."

I asked confused and he smiled sheepishly up at me.

"I had gone to my room like I'd said, but I started playing with my chakra and didn't get to sleep til the sky started to lighten."

He said and I sighed again. Considering we left the village at sun up I was surprised Yui was even able to stay on his feet.

"You dimwit, I told you to get plenty of sleep so we could get to the Leaf Village before the end of the third day."

I said and he looked down the tree branch he was sitting on, suddenly finding it extremely interesting.

"I'm sorry Kimi."

He said after a while and I sighed again. I seem to be doing that a lot lately.

"It's fine. We'll rest for a couple of minutes, but then we'll be moving out again. Try and get some rest."

I said and he nodded before leaning back against the trunk of the tree and closing his eyes. I looked him over and frowned. I could see how tired he really was and I felt bad for forcing him to push himself to keep up with me and Yuji.

"Don't worry about it Kimi, he'll be fine after his nap."

Yuji's deep voice said from behind me and I craned my neck back to see him still standing. His black hair was somewhat falling in his face again, but I could still see his dark blue eyes. They stood out from his pale skin, something we all had in common. I think it had something to do with the fact that our village was as far north as you could get so that the sun wouldn't effect us. It's not that the sun hurt us or anything, it's just what with being ice users the heat from the sun kinda makes things difficult.

He was a little taller than me, but then again what with me only being 5'3" I suppose a lot of people would be taller than me. His brother, Yui was even taller than me. They were practically mirror images of each other, on the outside at least. Both had black hair to their shoulders that had tendencies to fall into their faces and cover their dark blue eyes. Yuji was a hair taller than his brother, but both were taller than me by a good three inches. Yui was barely 16, whereas his brother was 16 about to turn 17. I was only 15. Both had a nice, lean build. They weren't scrawny by no means, but they weren't fat either. They, like me, were slim but strong. Though I had a little more of an advantage seeing as how Yuu's power was added to my own.

"I know Ji, but I can't help but feel bad."

I said and he simply smiled at me.

"I'm going to get some rest too. Try and relax."

He said and I nodded as I turned to face out over the expanse of trees that stretched out to the horizon and beyond.

'It will take us two days to reach Konoha, then we have to register for the Chuunin Exams.'

I thought to myself as I closed my eyes.

'**You should rest as well.'**

Yuu said and I flinched.

'I'm not going to do that. The _last _thing we need is for me to let my guard down. You know as well as I do that there are those out there searching for those like me to use as a weapon.'

I said back to her and she smiled at me from behind her cage.

'**Don't worry Kimi, I will keep watch over you and your friends.'**

She said and after a while I finally decided I might as well get some rest while I could. I moved across the tree branch till I was leaning against the trunk like Yui and closed my eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Sorry if you guys didn't like the flashback, I thought it was sweet and i had to have them meet somehow. Read and review. Much love, later.

* * *

-Yuichi-

I opened my eyes and instantly froze when I felt something soft and warm leaning against my side.

"Don't move you idiot."

My brother snapped and I blinked up at him in surprise. I turned my head just a little bit and my eyes widened in shock when I saw Kimi leaning against my shoulder, but what shocked me the most was the fact that she was asleep.

"She very rarely lets herself rest enough to actually fall asleep."

Yuji said and I just smiled down at Kimi. She tried so hard to stay strong for all of us. The village may try and say they accept her, but we all knew the truth. They feared her just like everyone else feared those who house tailed beasts within them. Even though Kimi had gotten control over Yuu when she was four they still treat her like she'll snap at any moment and they expect her not to notice.

"Stay still."

Yuji said and I turned back to look at my brother in confusion as he knelt down infront of me until I saw him picking Kimi up and backing away.

"What are you doing? She'll kill you when she wakes up."

I said getting to my feet.

"No she won't, besides you heard her yourself. She wants to get there before the night of the third day."

He said as he started jumping through the tree tops and I had no choice but to follow him.

"I hope you got enough rest Yui, 'cuz we're not gonna be stopping any time soon."

He said and I sighed to myself, but didn't say anything in response. Me and my brother may look like mirror images of each other, but that's about the only thing we have in common. Our personalities are so different, even our fighting styles are different. Yuji is more of the bookworm type, but he is not shy. He just doesn't talk to anyone he doesn't want to talk to, which isn't many people. Me, on the other hand, talk to just about anyone who will listen. I'm kinda a klutz though, but I'm a good fighter. Kimi and Yuji made sure of that. I don't like books, I'm more into the here and now and prefer it that way. I may talk to a lot of people, but the only two people that are my friends are Kimi and Yuji.

I looked up at Yuji as he ran across the tree tops barely even jostling Kimi as he ran. I looked her over as I ran next to my brother. She looked so peaceful when she was asleep. She didn't have that serious look on her face that made it seem like she expected someone to pop out of nowhere and attack her. Her waist length white hair was fallen to the side exposing the bandages she had wrapped around her forehead to cover the wolf mark she had there. The moonlight illuminated her pale skin, giving her an ethereal look. She was wearing an ice blue kimono to her ankles with splits to her hips with a pair of black shorts underneath, ankle high ninja shoes, and elbow length white fingerless gloves with arm guards and she wore her headband on her upper arm. Though she had all of that covered with a long black cloak so as not to be spotted, but the wind had blown it open to reveal her clothing. They hugged her slim body perfectly. I tensed when she moaned and started to move, but relaxed when she just turned and buried her face into Yuji's face to protect it from the wind. Many people think she's hostile and cold, and to her opponents she is, but she can be nice. She only shows kindness to those she deems worthy though, and believe it or not she is actually quite shy around other people.

"You should stop staring, Kimi may be asleep but I guarantee you Yuu isn't."

Yuji said and I blushed and looked away.

"When do you think we'll reach the village?"

I asked, trying to change the subject.

"If we keep this pace it'll only take another day."

He said and I nodded before falling back into silence.

* * *

**LATER THAT DAY**

* * *

-Yuji-

"Alright, we'll rest now."

I said as I landed on the ground and laid Kimi down against the trunk of a tree. I heard Yui flop down onto the forest floor with a sigh.

"You're hopeless."

I said as I stood up and stretched. The sun was just barely past it's highest point.

"Keep watch, I'm going to find us something to eat. If she wakes before I'm back make sure to stay put."

I said and once Yui nodded that he understood I left to go find something for the three of us to eat. I found three decent sized rabbits hiding in the brush and quickly caught them and skinned them. As I made my way back I couldn't help but think back to when Yui and I first met Kimi. It was when we had just entered the academy in our village. The sensei had said we had a new student and to-

* * *

-FLASHBACK-

* * *

"Class, we have a new student joining us today. Please make her feel welcome."

The sensei said and the whole class fell silent as a young girl, no older than five walked into the room. I looked up when I felt the nervousness of the new girl's chakra. I was shocked to see a little girl with shoulder length white hair and bandages wrapped around her forehead. She had her arms wrapped tightly around a little beige colored teddy bear as she looked out over the class. When her eyes met mine I instantly knew who she was. She was the one the elders had sealed the ten tailed wolf spirit inside.

"Go sit down."

The sensei said and the little girl nodded before making her way up the aisle to find a seat. People started whispering and I noticed the girl's grip on the teddy bear tightened. Someone tried to trip her, but she disappeared for a moment before appearing right beside me. People gasped in disbelief, but I just looked up at the little girl who was staring at me.

"Would you mind if I sat next to you?"

She asked in a soft voice and I nodded. She sat down and didn't say another word. Sensei resumed class and I tried to pay attention, but I could barely block out all the whispering of the kids around me or the amount of discomfort coming from the girl's chakra beside me. Yui was asleep, like usual, so he was missing the whole thing. The bell signaling break rang and kids ran out of the room. I noticed the girl didn't move and ignored it as I pushed my brother out of the aisle. We filed outside with the other kids to get some fresh air.

"Who's that girl sitting next to you Yuji?"

Yui asked and I sighed.

"If you hadn't been sleeping then you'd know she's the new addition to our class. I don't know her name, but she's the host of the ten tailed wolf."

I said and his dark blue eyes widened in shock.

"What!"

He yelled and I smacked him in the back of the head.

"Shut up idiot. She already feels uncomfortable with how everyone else is reacting around her."

I said and he looked at me confused.

"Listen to those around you and you'll see what I'm talking about."

I said and Yui got really silent as he listened to the kids around us. I knew he was listening to a particular group of kids that were making their way back inside.

"She's a monster."

One kid said.

"Yeah, we should make her leave."

Another said, then they all went inside.

"See?"

I asked as Yui opened his eyes to look at me.

"Think we should help?"

He asked and I shook my head.

"No, it's none of our business."

I said, but stopped when I heard a scream. I looked at Yui before running for the classroom with Yui right on my heels. I stopped when I saw the group of kids from earlier surrounding the white haired girl. She was on her side clutching her teddy bear and begging them to leave her alone. I saw one of the kids grab her bandages and tear them off her forehead to reveal a wolf mark on her forehead.

"Look, she's even branded like an animal."

One kid said and when I saw the tears in the girl's eyes I lost it.

"Hey!"

I yelled and they all looked up at me as I ran past them and stood between them and the girl.

"Leave her alone."

I said and they all laughed at me.

"Oi, why are you protecting her? She's a monster."

One kid said and I was going to say something, but Yui smacked the kid in the back of the head before coming to stand beside me.

"She's no monster. If anything it's you guys that are the monsters. What did she ever do to you to deserve this?"

He asked and I smiled at my little brother. He wasn't such an idiot after all. The group of kids didn't like us defending the girl and tried to attack us, but what with me and Yui being the best fighters in the whole Takemori family it wasn't really much of a fight.

They ran off and Yui and I turned towards the little girl. She had tears streaming down her face and she was clutching her teddy bear for dear life. I grabbed her bandages and knelt down infront of her. I reached forward and was surprised when she let me wrap them around her forehead. I pulled back and smiled at her.

"My name is Yuji Takemori and this idiot here is my brother Yuichi."

I said and Yui yelled in protest.

"Hey! I'm not an idiot you are. You said you didn't want to get involved and yet you ran in here anyways."

He said and I glared at him.

"Well excuse me for not liking when people hurt others."

I snapped back and Yui was about to say something when we heard laughter. We both froze and turned to see the little girl laughing at us.

"You guys are funny."

She said with a smile and I smiled back at her before helping her to her feet.

"My name's Kimiko."

She said and my smile widened.

"Well welcome to the Village Beneath the Ice's academy classroom Kimiko."

I said and she just smiled up at me.

* * *

-END FLASHBACK-

* * *

-Yuji-

It was still hard to believe she was so shy back then. She still is shy, but she hides it with cautiousness. Since that day we've been friends. We graduated from the academy with top marks and we continued to train. She helped Yui with his ice and helped us both with our fighting. She was a really good fighter despite her looks. In no time we became the top three deadliest ninja in our village. As soon as Kimiko turned fifteen she said she wanted to go to Konoha to take the Chuunin Exams and asked that Yui and I come with her. I sighed to myself as I made my way back into the small clearing Yui and Kimi were in. We'd probably follow her anywhere she wanted to go, Yui and I both have come to think of her as our sister over the years and to be honest, I wouldn't have it any other way.


	3. Chapter 3

-Kimi-

I woke to the sound of a fire crackling and groaned as I opened my eyes. I smelled something being cooked and looked up to see Yui and Ji fussing over how long to keep the rabbit that was speared and held in the fire in there.

"You should take it out."

I said as I sat up. They both turned to look at me before Ji reached in and pulled the three rabbits from the fire. He walked over to me and handed me one.

"Thank you."

I said as I took it from him and bit into the still hot meat. It burned my mouth and I used my ice to cool it down instantly. Not to freeze it, just to cool it. I instantly noticed we were in a different place from when I fell asleep and the sun was just setting meaning I'd been out for a while.

"How long was I out?"

I asked as I took another bite of my rabbit.

"Half the day. Yui and I woke up a little while after we stopped to rest and I carried you here. We were going to wait till you woke up before continuing."

Ji said and I nodded as I finished my rabbit and threw the stick into the fire.

**'Yui was watching us.'**

Yuu said and I sighed.

'Yui is always watching us.'

I reminded her and she smiled from behind her cage.

**'True. Other than that there were no threats.'**

She said and I nodded before telling her thanks and getting to my feet.

"Come on, we should be able to get there by the end of the night if we run."

I said and they both nodded before finishing their meal and putting out the fire.

Some time later we reached the edge of the forest near the gates of Konoha.

"We will rest out here until morning, then we will go inside."

I said as I stopped on a tree branch. I heard Yui collapse on the branch beside me while his brother silently sat down. I stared at the village before us and noted that in the center of the village was a large building.

'That must be the Hokage building.'

I thought as I looked over the rest of the village. A few feet away from the Hokage building there was what looked to be an arena of sorts where the Chuunin Exams' final part was to take place. I noticed the bit of forest outside the village was surrounded by fences and knew instantly that that was the Forest of Death that was the second part of the Chuunin Exams. After a while I decided to sit down and let my legs hang down from the branch we were all on. I could feel the chakra of many different ninja from within the village ahead of us, but only two stood out to me. They were like my own.

**'They too are hosts.'**

Yuu said and my eyes widened at that news.

'So I'm not the only Jinchuuriki who's going to enter the Chuunin Exams? That will make things interesting. Can you tell who the other two are? The beasts?'

I asked slightly curious.

**'I sense the chakra of the nine tailed fox Kyuubi and the one tailed raccoon Shukaku.'**

Yuu said and I smiled.

'This will be interesting.'

I thought before deciding to get as much rest as I could. I knew Yuu would wake me when the sun rose again.

* * *

A/N: Sorry, this one was kinda short, but at least they finally reached the village. Stuff will get more interesting now. Please review.


	4. Chapter 4

-Kimi-

**'Kimi, it is time to move. The sun has risen over the horizon.'**

Yuu said and I opened my eyes and looked around. She was right, the sun had risen over the horizon. I stood and stretched before rousing Yui and Ji.

"Come on, today is when we register for the Chuunin Exams."

I said and they both nodded to me before we jumped from the trees and landed right outside the village gates.

"Woah there. Papers."

The guards said, blocking out path. I reached into my kimono and pulled out our papers and handed them to the guards. Both wore the traditional ninja garbs and both had shoulder length brown hair.

"Ninja from the Village Hidden Beneath the Ice? You guys are a long way from home."

The guard on the left said as they handed me back our papers.

"Thanks for noticing."

I said with a fake smile which caused the guards to narrow their eyes at me.

"Go on in. Make your way to the Hokage building to talk about your stay for the Exams."

They said and I nodded before leading the way into the village.

"You know you don't have to be that way with everyone Kimi."

Yui said and I sighed.

"I know, but you also know what its been like for me."

I said and he fell silent. Suddenly there was a blur of blonde and something collided with me and I got knocked to the ground. I growled as I rubbed my backside.

"Hey! Look where you're going!"

I heard Ji snap at someone and I looked up to see a blonde haired boy around my age on the ground opposite of me. He had whisker-like lines on his cheeks and was wearing an orange jacket and pants.

"Sorry about that."

The boy said as he stood up. He held out his hand to me to help me up and I stared up at him in shock. Normally people would run from me as soon as they realized my chakra was different. It was then that I remembered I was hiding almost all of my chakra.

"It's alright."

I said as I took his offered hand and he helped me to my feet. I noticed he had deep blue eyes.

"Naruto!"

A voice called out and we all looked up to see a group of people coming our way. One was a girl around mine and the blonde, Naruto's age with pink hair to her waist. One was an onyx haired that seemed distant. And the last one was a silver haired man with half his face covered with his nose stuck in a book. I could tell he was the sensei of these three by the fact he was wearing a Jounin vest.

"What?"

Naruto asked the pink haired girl.

"You should watch where you're going. Sorry about that, he's always doing things without thinking."

The girl said talking to me. I blinked in surprise, but didn't say anything.

"My name's Sakura. The blonde idiot over there is Naruto. And that is Sasuke."

The pink haired girl, Sakura said pointing to each person as she introduced them. I noticed her voice took on a dreamy tone as she said Sasuke's name.

'Sasuke? Where have I heard that name before?'

I thought trying to remember.

**'He's the last known survivor of the Uchiha clan.'**

Yuu said and I nodded as I remembered hearing Ji say something about that.

"And this is our sensei Kakashi."

Sakura said motioning towards the silver haired man with half his face covered.

"Kakashi? As in Kakashi the Copy Ninja?"

Ji asked and I saw the silver haired man rub the back of his head awkwardly.

"The very same."

He said and I noticed the change in Ji's chakra. He was a huge fan of Kakashi.

"It was very nice meeting all of you, but we need to go see the Hokage about our entrance into the Chuunin Exams."

I said catching all their attentions.

"You're taking part in the Chuunin Exams?"

Naruto asked and I nodded as Yui and Ji followed me past them. I ignored when Naruto yelled out that he'd see us later and kept walking.

"Well _that_ was awkward."

Yui said and I nodded in agreement as we walked up the steps of the Hokage building. I knocked on the door and a voice said to come in. We walked in and stopped infront of a desk where an older man sat.

"Ah, you three must be from the Village Hidden Beneath the Ice correct? My name is Sarutobi, it's a pleasure to meet you all."

He said and I nodded in response.

"Well, you have all been registered. You have a hotel you can stay in until the Exams are over. Here is the key. Please enjoy your stay in our village and if there's anything you need, just ask."

He said and we all bowed respectively before leaving.

We made our way to our hotel and put our stuff down. I quickly threw off my cloak and changed into something a little more comfortable. I stared at my reflection in the bathroom mirror and after pulling on my white ninja shoes I left the room telling Yui and Ji that I was going to explore the village and to stay put until I got back.

'What do you think of this village so far Yuu?'

I asked her as I walked through the streets aimlessly, not having anywhere particular in mind.

**'It is fine. The whether is a little hotter than we're used to.'**

She said and I laughed.

'That is to be expected, the sun freely shines on this village whereas ours is hidden.'

I said and she growled at me and I simply smiled.

**'That blonde haired boy, Naruto, he is the host of the Kyuubi.'**

Yuu said suddenly and I stopped.

'Really? It's odd how he didn't seem like a host.'

I said and heard Yuu laugh at me from behind her cage.

**'All hosts have different upbringings. His was one of hatred and fear like the rest of you, but he also has ambitions and lives carefree. He seems to have found friends that help ease his life as have you.'**

Yuu said and I nodded as I started walking again.

'What about the Shukaku host?'

I asked and saw Yuu frown.

**'That host is within this village, but I have yet to sense where.'**

She said and I sighed.

'It is fine. I'm sure I will find them eventually.'

I said and she nodded in agreement. Suddenly sounds of shouting caught my attention and I headed towards them to see a group of little kids, no older than four or five running from a boy clad in black with a hat with cat ears on it and purple war pain covering his face. I saw brown hair sticking out from his hat that matched his brown eyes. There was a girl with blonde hair pulled back in four ponytails standing next to him with a bored look on her face.

"Get back here you little punks."

The cat-eared boy said as he grabbed one of the kids.

"Konohamaru!"

A little girl with orange hair yelled. I walked closer about to interfere when the cat-eared boy suddenly dropped the little boy named Konohamaru and glared up at a tree. I followed his gaze to see the onyx haired kid from earlier bouncing a pebble in his hand.

"Why you-"

The cat-eared boy started, but got cut off by the little kids.

"Take that you bit meanie."

The little girl said before she kicked him in the shin. I couldn't help but laugh at that. That was priceless, but my smile quickly faded when the cat-eared boy picked up the girl by the front of her shirt and glared at her.

"L-Let me go!"

The girl cried, but the boy didn't listen.

"I'd put her down if I were you."

I said walking up to them. The other two little kids ran and hid behind me. The cat-eared boy glared at me.

"Oh, and who are you to tell me what to do?"

He asked and I smirked at him before quickly using my ice to create a small oval shape, much like a rock, and threw it at his hand making him drop the little girl. She quickly ran over to me and hid behind me with the others.

"Why you…"

The cat-eared boy said as he started to reach for something.

"Kankuro!"

A voice called and the cat-eared boy froze instantly. I looked up to see a red haired boy standing upside down in the tree Sasuke was in, but on the opposite side.

"G-Gaara! These kids started it."

The cat-eared boy, Kankuro said and I could tell both he and the blonde girl were clearly scared of the red haired kid. I also noticed that Sakura and Naruto had joined us.

"You're a disgrace to our village! Why do you think we came here?"

The red haired boy snapped before he disappeared and reappeared right infront of Kankuro.

"For the Chuunin Exams."

He managed to say and the red haired boy nodded.

"Exactly. So stop fooling around!"

He snapped and I saw Kankuro and the blonde girl flinch at his tone. Hell, even I wanted to flinch at the amount of malice in his voice. Kankuro and the blonde ran off leaving the red head in the clearing with me, Sasuke, and the others. His eyes locked onto mine and I froze. His eyes were a light teal color, but were rimmed in dark circles clearing showing his constant battle with himself not to go to sleep. Not many people would do that unless they had a reason.

'He must be the….'

**'You are right. He is the host of Shukaku.'**

Yuu said and I mentally nodded as I looked him over. He was clearly different from Naruto. He had spiky red hair, with the bangs on the left parted to reveal a red kanji symbol reading 'love' on his forehead. His eyes stood out against his pale skin. He wore a black mesh-like suit with t-shirt-like sleeves and an open neck with a black skin tight shirt over it. He was wearing a pair of black pants and black ninja shoes. He had a white cloth over his right shoulder and the left side of his hips, and a wide leather band system over the left shoulder and right side of his hips. With this leather band, he carried around what looked like a gourd of some sort. I noticed his headband was tied to the leather band showing he was from Suna.

"Who are you?"

He asked still looking at me.

"Kimiko of the Ice, and you?"

I asked and he glared at me before answering.

"Gaara of the Sand."

He said and I nodded in acknowledgement and he did the same to me before moving to walk away, but Naruto stopped him.

"Don't you want to know my name?"

He asked and I heard Gaara scoff at him before he disappeared in a whirl of sand. I couldn't help but smile at the look on Naruto's face from being dissed and turned to look at the kids who were still hiding behind me.

"Are you all alright?"

I asked and they all nodded.

"Good, go bug the blonde idiot."

I said and they all ran over to Naruto and I headed back to my hotel.

'That was definitely interesting. I can't wait till the Exams actually start.'

I thought as I walked through the door. Ji and Yui looked at me and I smiled at them before heading to the bed closest to the window and laying down. I didn't want to sleep, but I knew I needed it. So I closed my eyes and let the darkness claim me, knowing that Yui and Ji would watch over me and if they fell asleep then Yuu would keep watch and warn me of any danger.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the added detail to clothin and such, i just didn't want to breeze through it you know? Also, the conversations will be different from anime and manga, but also have parts that are the same. Please review.


	5. Chapter 5

-Gaara-

I appeared in the hotel room me and my siblings were sharing during our stay for the Chuunin Exams and heard Kankuro complaining about something.

"Damn, that girl's throw hurt more than that Uchiha kid's."

He said and I saw him holding his wrist. I mentally smirked when I saw the bruise forming on his hand from where that white haired girl had thrown something at him to make him drop the little girl.

"What did she even throw at you? I didn't see her pick up a rock."

Temari said and Kankuro shrugged.

"I don't know, but it was cold. And just _who_ was she?"

He asked and I walked further into the room at that point.

"Kimiko of the Ice."

I said making both Temari and Kankuro jump.

"G-Gaara, when did you get back?"

Temari asked and I sighed.

"Just now."

I said before moving to the balcony and jumping up onto the roof.

"Think he's still angry about earlier?"

Kankuro asked and I used my sand to throw him onto the bed inside.

"I'd take that as a yes. You shouldn't have been messing around with those kids anyway."

Temari said and Kankuro started to say something, but I moved farther away from the window and their voices became muffled.

**'That girl was a host.'**

Shukaku said and I growled in annoyance.

'I could tell that for myself. What I couldn't tell was of what beast.'

I said and heard Shukaku's laughter. He knew, and I knew that he wasn't going to tell me.

**'I can't wait to see how she does in the ring.'**

He said and I couldn't deny that I too wanted to see her fight.

* * *

-Kimi-

I sighed boredly as the proctors explained the rules of the written test before us. This was the first part of the Exams. We were all to take a written test, but that wasn't the real test. The real test was to see how well we could all cheat without getting caught. Ji didn't need to worry about that, he was a bookworm. Yui, despite his looks, was really smart when it came to things like this. And I had no problem with finding a way to get answers, I'd already skimmed over the paper and knew practically all of it and the bit that I didn't know I could just get from Ji using my ice.

"You may begin."

The proctor said and everyone immediately picked up their pencils. I filled out the questions I knew and had only three questions left to answer with more than an hour to spare. I put down my pencil and looked around the room to see how the others were doing. Sasuke was done, no surprise there. Sakura was just finishing up, but Naruto looked like he was about to tear his hair out by the roots. He was obviously an idiot after all.

"You three, out."

A proctor said and three kids left after one of them had been caught cheating. That was the only down side. If even _one_ member of your team was caught cheating then _all_ of you would be sent out and would have to wait till next year to try again. I looked over at Ji, he was done. Yui was done as well. I looked down at the blonde girl from yesterday and saw she was finished as well. Kankuro looked stumped on a question and was rubbing the side of his head in confusion. I smiled at that.

'Ha, serves him right.'

I thought before moving to look at how Gaara was doing. I noticed he had one hand over his left eye and felt a small bit, barely even noticeable, of his chakra above me and looked up to see an eyeball of sand trying to look at my paper through my hands. It's pupil looked at me and I smirked up at it before moving my hands out of it's way so it could more easily read my paper. I don't know why, maybe it had something to do with the fact that both of us were hosts, but there was something about Gaara that I liked.

I looked up at the clock and sighed, I had wasted a good amount of time. I picked up my pencil after having created a little fly out of ice and sending it to fly over Ji's paper. I heard him laugh a bit before moving his hand away from his paper and pretend to swat at the fly. I could see his answers in the back of my head and quickly filled out the last two questions on my paper before laying my pencil down and cutting my chakra off from the little fly and it melted into water and evaporated. I laid my head down to the side of the desk after seeing there was still a good fifty minutes left of the test. I sighed to myself before using my chakra to create little figurines out of ice and had them fight on top of the desk to entertain myself. I was surprised when I noticed the small amount of Gaara's chakra above me hadn't left yet and peeked up out of the corner of my eye to see the little eyeball watching the figurines on my desk. I blushed before quickly making them melt and the water evaporate. I looked down to where he was actually sitting to see the corner of his mouth pulled up in what looked like a smirk, but it was gone too fast for me to be sure. I blushed again and laid my head down.

* * *

-Gaara-

I had created a small eye out of my sand and had it hover over the entire class to find the person with the most filled out on their sheet and the easiest handwriting to read. I stopped above Kimiko's paper. She was done all except for two questions, but she wasn't working on the test, she was looking around the room. I tried to read the questions on her paper, but her hands were slightly in the way. I growled slightly in annoyance before she looked up and her eyes met mine. I could see everything the little eye did, so when she looked at it it was like she was looking at me. She smirked up at it before moving her hands from her paper. I blinked in confusion, but didn't waste time in copying down her answers. She was really smart. I saw she used a bit of her chakra to make a little fly out of ice and send it over to the older of the two guys she'd come to the village with and she filled out the last two questions on her paper before the fly melted. I copied the last two answers and put my pencil down. She put her head down with a sigh and I was about to stop my jutsu when I felt her chakra spike just a bit, not enough that the proctors to notice, but I did. I watched a little bit longer and saw she had created two little figurines out of ice ontop of her desk and they were fighting each other.

'Not bad.'

I thought. I saw Kimiko look up at my the eye out of the corner of hers and she blushed before the figurines melted and the water evaporated. I stopped my jutsu and looked down at my own desk. I could feel her eyes on me and couldn't help but smirk, but then I caught myself and stopped. I glanced up at the clock, we still had too much time left for this test and I was bored. I looked back up towards Kimiko and saw she had her head down, she wasn't asleep, I could tell that much from her breathing. She was just bored. I found myself wanting to smirk again, but shook myself.

'Strange.'

I thought before turning to look out the window.

* * *

-Yui-

"God! I thought it would never end!"

Kimiko said and I couldn't help but laugh at her.

"Don't laugh at me Yuichi! You were sleeping the first few minutes and Ji had to wake your ass up, then you fell asleep right after you finished. I couldn't get to sleep!"

Kimi snapped and I just laughed that much harder.

"Why you little…."

She said as she walked towards me. My eyes widened as I realized I'd ticked her off and I started to back off.

"Knock it off you two."

Ji said and I noticed that Kimi glared at him before a smirk made it's way onto her face. I knew what was gonna happen and stepped back a few more feet before I caught in the middle of it. We were several feet away from the other kids so Kimi was being her usual, non shy, non cautious self. I watched with a smile on my face as she jumped on Ji's back.

"Ah! Get off me Kimi!"

He yelled, but she only tightened her grip until he fell to the ground, then she moved and pinned him down.

"Say you give."

She said and Ji glared up at her.

"No."

He said and she simply pouted at him. I saw Ji smile and nod to me and I sighed before jumping onto Kimi's back.

"Ah!"

She screamed in shock as I tackled her off of my brother.

"Give."

I said and she laughed before she flipped us over so she was pinning me down like she had done to Ji.

"No, you give."

She said and I smirked up at her as Ji charged at her, but she didn't even budge as she used her ice to wrap around his arm and leg and flip him onto his back on the ground, then create a clone of herself out of ice and pin him down as well.

"No fair, that's cheating!"

I yelled up at her, but she just laughed.

"No it's not! Two against one is unfair."

She said with a smile. I had missed seeing her smile, ever since we got here she's been so serious. I missed the happy, fun loving Kimi.

"Hold up Gaara!"

A voice called and I noticed that Kimi froze from her place ontop of me.

* * *

-Kimi-

I was playing around with Yui and Ji when I heard a voice say Gaara's name. I felt his chakra coming this way and froze. I quickly got off of Yui and called my chakra from my ice and had it evaporate. Yui and Ji got to their feet and moved to the side just as Gaara came towards us followed by Kankuro and the blonde haired chick who's name I had still yet to learn. When Gaara's eyes met mine I froze, he looked mad. No, beyond mad, he looked pissed. I wonder why. He suddenly disappeared in a whirl of sand and left Kankuro and the blonde haired girl behind.

"Dammit!"

The blonde cursed before she finally took notice of me, Yui, and Ji.

"Oh."

She said in surprise.

"Hi."

I said and noticed instantly that Kankuro was glaring at me. I noticed his left hand had a pretty nasty bruise on it from when I threw my ice rock at him and instantly felt bad. He hadn't really done anything to me and I'd hurt him.

"You know, you really hurt my brother yesterday."

The blonde said and I blinked up at her.

'So they _are_ the Sand Siblings after all.'

I thought as I looked up at her.

"I'm sorry. I just can't stand it when people pick on little kids."

I said as I looked her over. She was in a short white kimono like outfit that stopped right before her knees. I noticed she had a fan of sorts on her back and that Kankuro had a puppet wrapped in bandages attacked to his back.

"I can fix it."

I said and they both looked at me confused.

"What?"

The blonde asked and I sighed before moving forward and grabbing Kankuro's hand.

"Hey! Don't touch me!"

He yelled as he pulled his hand out of my reach. I rolled my eyes at him before grabbing it anyway.

"Get over it you big baby."

I said before using my ice and melting it into water. I moved it over his entire hand and used my chakra to heal his hand.

"How did you _do_ that?"

He asked in shock as he looked down at his hand.

"Kimi is really good with her ability. She's the only one who knows how to heal with it."

Yui said from behind me and I blushed at his compliment.

"Thank you."

The blonde said and I looked up at her.

"My name's Temari."

She said and I nodded at her.

"My name's Kimiko. This is Yuji and his brother Yuichi."

I said introducing them.

"This is my brother Kankuro who you already know, and the red head from earlier is our younger brother Gaara."

Temari said introducing Kankuro to Yui and Ji.

"Why was he so upset?"

I asked and she blinked in surprise at my question.

"Kankuro pissed him off."

She said and I looked at Kankuro confused.

"How?"

I asked and Kankuro blushed making me continue to look at him confused.

"He asked if he could see down the female proctor's shirt with his sand eye jutsu and it ticked him off that Kankuro wanted to use him for something. He doesn't like it when people try to use him, despite what it's for."

She said and I glared at Kankuro and noticed he flinched. I sighed before shaking my head at him.

"I know how that is. Yui, Ji, we're leaving. It was nice meeting you Temari."

I said as I turned to leave.

"Kankuro."

I said in a slightly harsher tone before heading outside. I don't know why, but for some reason I wanted to go find Gaara.

"Yui, you and Ji go back to the hotel. I'll be back before midnight."

I said and Yui looked like he was about to argue before Ji made him leave with him. I jumped up to the highest point in the village and looked around.

'If I was pissed off and wanted to be alone where would I go?'

I wondered as I looked around before I saw a section of the village a decent ways away and thought I saw a figure jumping across the rooftops. I smiled to myself before jumping from the tower I was on to the rooftops below. He was so far away. It was then that I decided to try something similar to what he does with his sand. I wrapped myself in my ice and thought about the rooftop several feet ahead of me and wrapped my chakra around myself. I felt a rush and when I looked down and the ice fell away I was there.

'Sweet, it's like teleporting.'

I thought with a smile before speeding up and following after Gaara.

* * *

A/N: Sorry, I decided to have a little fun with this chapter. Sorry if you no like, but I do. Haven't decided who she's gonna be with yet, but it's between Kankuro and Gaara, that's all I'm gonna say. Review, love you all muches. Night.


	6. Chapter 6

-Kimi-

I saw him stop a few feet ahead of me and sit down on the rooftop he was on and stare out at the forest. I slowed down and silently came up behind him, still keeping almost all my chakra hidden.

"So…"

I said and I saw him tense.

"This is where you ran off to."

I said as I walked up to him and sat down next to him. I let my legs hang down over the edge of the roof and leaned back on my arms as I looked out over the forest. It was actually really pretty.

"Why'd you follow me?"

He asked in a sharp tone and I sighed.

"I don't know, I guess I just wanted something to do. Maybe I wanted to hang with you. You pick."

I said and he was silent a while.

"So, you don't like being used like a tool either huh?"

I asked after a while and felt him tense beside me.

"Relax, I'm sure you can tell I'm like you."

I said and smiled to myself when he relaxed a bit.

"You're nothing like me."

He said and I turned to look at him. He was staring out at the forest, a pained look in his eyes.

"Oh? So then am I wrong in guessing we're both hosts to tailed beasts?"

I asked and he turned and glared at me, but I just looked him in the eye.

"We may both have beasts, but that doesn't mean you're anything like me."

He snapped and I sighed and looked away.

"Right, 'cuz I so don't understand what it's like to have my whole village fear and hate me just because of what's inside me. I so don't understand what it's like to have people I used to think loved me try to use me or try to kill me. I'm just some happy-go-lucky little idiot that had the misfortune of having a tailed beast sealed inside me right?"

I asked while looked out at the forest. He didn't say anything in response and I knew I was right.

"You're not."

He said after a while and I looked at him confused.

"Huh?"

"You're not an idiot."

He said and I smiled before looking up at the sky. The sun was starting to go down over the horizon making the sky different shades of red, orange, pink, and purple.

"And you're not as alone as you think."

I said and felt him tense beside me.

* * *

-Gaara-

I had gotten away from my siblings so I could calm down without doing anything rash only to be followed anyways, but not by who I'd expected. It was the white haired girl Kimiko. When she said she was like me I got angry. She was nothing like me and I told her so.

"Right, 'cuz I so don't understand what it's like to have my whole village fear and hate me just because of what's inside me. I so don't understand what it's like to have people I used to think loved me try to use me or try to kill me. I'm just some happy-go-lucky little idiot that had the misfortune of having a tailed beast sealed inside me right?"

She said and I froze. She was just like me.

"You're not."

I said after a while and she looked at me confused.

"Huh?"

"You're not an idiot."

I said and she smiled before turning to look up at the sky.

"And you're not as alone as you think."

She said and I tensed. What did she mean? Of course I was alone.

"You may fear those close to and those who don't know you, but think about it. Who are the two people who have always been by your side?"

She asked and I thought about it and realized the two people she was talking about.

"They're only still with me because the mission requires them to be."

I said without thinking, then clamped my mouth shut as I realized I'd given away the fact we were on a mission.

"If you say so. But is that really true? I mean, are they _really_ only still with you because of that or are they still with you because they love you? They are your siblings right?"

She asked and I looked at her in shock. She was still looking up at the sky. I looked her over as the fading light from the setting sun shined down on her. Her waist length white hair hung loosely around her shoulders and her bangs covered her forehead that was wrapped in bandages. Her pale skin seemed to glow from the sunlight. Her blue eyes stood out from her skin. She was wearing what looked to be a fur coat of sorts around her shoulders, but it was as white as her hair. Underneath that she wore a ninja mesh shirt with a white shirt over it. She had on a white skirt of sorts that stopped a few inches before her knees. She had white ninja shoes on and white elbow length fingerless gloves with guards on them. I noticed she had a sword strapped to her waist and she probably had other weapons hidden from sight. She truly was beautiful. I shook my head as soon as I thought that and looked away.

**'Seems like you're getting attached.'**

Shukaku said and I growled at him.

"They fear me, they do not love me."

I said, answering her question and trying to ignore Shukaku's laughter from within my head.

"If you say so. I don't have actual siblings, but Yui and Ji are probably the closest thing I have to family. My mother and father were killed when I was younger because Yuu got out and I couldn't control her. Ever since then the village has hated me even more, they say if a child could kill her own parents then what's keeping them from killing anyone else? Even though I gained control at four, they still treated me like I could snap at any moment. When I joined the academy it was the same. The adults' fears had been passed on to their kids and I'm sure you know how that is. I was being picked on when Yui and Ji came and stood up for me. Since then, we've been together."

She said and I blinked in surprise that she was telling me all this.

"Why did you kill your parents?"

I asked curiously and noticed the sad smile that made it's way onto her face.

"Because of what my father did. I loved them, I mean they were my parents you know? But my father didn't like the fact that I had a beast sealed within me, so as punishment he decided to brand me with the mark of the beast."

She said and I watched as she reached up and pulled at one end of the bandages wrapped around her forehead and they fell away to reveal a wolf's head etched into her skin in the middle of her forehead. It's teeth were bared as if it were snarling at someone.

"The Juubi."

I whispered and she laughed a little.

"Yeah. The ten tailed wolf was sealed within me as an infant, much like how the other tailed beast are sealed within the other hosts. Naruto has the Kyuubi, and you have the Shukaku. Though she doesn't like the name Juubi, so I call her Yuu."

She said with a smile and I looked at her. She seemed to be happy that she had a beast sealed inside her.

"Don't get me wrong, my life has been horrible because of her, but it's also been good. If it hadn't been for her I wouldn't be here talking with you right now."

She said as she rewrapped the bandages around her forehead and tied them. I looked at her confused and slightly curious.

"What do you mean?"

I asked and she turned and smiled at me which confused me further.

"I'll tell you that after the second part of the Exams, that is if we both pass."

She said with a smile before getting to her feet.

"Oh, I meant to say thanks. That little sand transportation thing you do seemed really cool so I tried it, it makes travel a lot easier."

She said and I looked up at her confused before she was surrounded by ice, then disappeared.

'Why did she bother telling me all of that?'

I wondered as I got to my feet. Shukaku only laughed and I ignored him as I used my sand to get back to the hotel I was sharing with my siblings. They both instantly asked if I was okay and Kankuro even apologized for what he said and explained he hadn't meant it to sound like it had. As I listened to them what Kimiko said went through my mind.

_'If you say so. But is that really true? I mean, are they really only still with you because of that or are they still with you because they love you? They are your siblings right?'_

I found myself smiling as I made my way over to the balcony of the hotel room. Seems like she's more like me than I'd thought.

* * *

A/N: Hope you guys enjoyed. You got a little insight into Kimiko's life and there was a little bondage between her and Gaara. Please review, more is still to come.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: In this one we get a little insight to how protective Kimi really is over her teammates. Read and review and I'll update as soon as I can.

* * *

-Kimi-

Everyone walked up to our instructor and gave her back the consent forms we signed. She took them all and smiled at us.

"If you manage to get both the Heaven and the Earth scroll to the tower then you pass this part of the exam. Best of luck to the lot of you."

Our instructor said, I hadn't paid attention to when she'd introduced herself.

"Oh, and I've got one more word of advice for you."

She said and everyone listened closely.

"Just don't die!"

She said and the gates infront of us opened. I smiled and looked at Ji and Yui.

"You guys ready?"

I asked and they both nodded before we ran into the forest. We hadn't even been in there five minutes before we ran into a group of Rain ninja with an Earth scroll.

"Ji, you got this right?"

I asked and he nodded as he pulled his kunai and held it at eyelevel.

"In that case Yui and I will just watch."

I said as I pulled Yui with me over to a tree and sat down and watched as Ji was attacked by all four Rain ninja. I wasn't over confident or anything, but I knew the extent of both of my partners' power. Ji could easily take the four Rain ninja by himself, hell, he could take them in his sleep. We weren't the top three ninja from the Village Hidden Beneath the Ice for nothing. I watched as Ji jumped over two of the ninja who had charged at him at the same time, making them collide with each other before he turned and threw shuriken bombs at them and shrouding them in smoke. I smiled as I knew what he was doing. I saw him pulled out another kunai and held one in both hand before charging into the black smoke. I heard grunts and cries of pain and looked to my right as Ji suddenly appeared next to me with the Earth scroll in his hands and not a scratch on him.

"Nice job, you almost beat your old record."

I said as I stood up and took the scroll from him, putting it on the inside of my jacket to keep it safe and out of sight.

"I call the next fight."

Yui said and I smiled at him as we headed deeper into the forest. We only needed the Heaven scroll, then we'd be done and it hadn't even been five minute yet.

* * *

-Temari-

I watched as Gaara mercilessly killed the two Sound ninja that had the Heaven scroll. Once he released them from his sand Kankuro ran over to their bodies and picked up the scroll. He put it in his jacket and we were off to find someone with the Earth scroll. I don't care how many times I see him kill, it still scares me to think that Gaara can kill without so much as batting an eye. Five days in this forest with him, the mere thought made me shiver with fear. Gaara had a bloodlust like you wouldn't believe, and if he wanted to he could kill Kankuro and me in the blink of an eye and not even care. But he's my brother and despite the fact that he scares the shit out of me, I love him. Even if he doesn't know it and I'm sure Kankuro feels the same way.

* * *

-Yui-

"You know, if it's too hard for you you can always let Kimi take over."

I heard Ji say mockingly and I growled in annoyance as I pushed off from the four Mist ninja infront of me.

"Shut up!"

I yelled as I threw a shuriken bomb at the ninjas' feet. They were shrouded in smoke, but they did some kind of jutsu that made the smoke disappear and a mist take its place.

'Fuck.'

I thought as I looked down at my arm. They'd nicked me pretty good. I could tell I wouldn't be able to beat them, I had been too cocky and it had cost me.

"Kimi!"

I yelled and she didn't even say a word before disappearing from her spot beside Ji. I heard grunts and cries from the Mist ninja and tried to see what was happening, but the mist was still heavy in the air and I couldn't see a think. Finally a figure was coming my way from the mist and I held the kunai in my hand, ready to attack when I saw it was just Kimi. She was smiling and had a Heaven scroll in her hand.

"Next time don't be so cocky, haven't I taught you anything?"

She asked as she tucked the scroll in her jacket and looked at my arm.

"Does it hurt?"

She asked and I blushed and looked anywhere but at her.

"I'm fine, it's just a scratch."

I said and cried out when she suddenly grabbed my arm.

"Bloody hell woman!"

I yelled and she gave me a look that said 'lie to me again and your arm will be the least of your worries'.

"Yui, you should know better than to lie to Kimi."

Ji said as Kimi used her chakra and melted her ice to water and had it surround my arm as it healed me.

"Sorry."

I said and Kimi looked at me as she finished.

"It's fine. Come on, we've got both scrolls. Let's go."

She said and Ji and I both nodded before following after her.

We'd gotten close enough that we could see the tower, but I could tell it was still a ways off.

"Kimi….a break…..please."

I begged and she stopped and turned to look at me.

"Sorry. We'll rest for a bit, but just a bit. I don't want to have to spend the night in these woods."

She said and I nodded gratefully as I sat down. Ji and Kimi did the same, though Kimi turned to look through the brush beside her.

"What is it Kimi?"

I asked since she had a thoughtful look on her face, like she recognized something but wasn't sure.

"Is that….Gaara?"

She asked and I turned to see what she was talking about. Sure enough, the three Sand Siblings were in the next clearing over. Temari and Kankuro were each holding umbrellas and I looked to see what Gaara was doing. He was facing off against three Rain ninja and he too had an umbrella in his hands. When the Rain ninja used their umbrellas to throw needles at Gaara I heard Kimi gasp and looked at her to see she had her eyes trained on Gaara with a look of worry on her face.

* * *

-Kimi-

I watched as the Rain ninja attacked Gaara and he had no way to protect himself and I closed my eyes not wanting to see him get killed. When I heard the Rain ninja yell out in shock I opened my eyes to see Gaara was fine, he had a shield of sand around him which had blocked the needles. I breathed a sigh of relief seeing he was okay.

'Wait a minute, why do I care if he's okay or not?'

I wondered and heard Yuu laugh at me.

**'I would think it be obvious.'**

She said and I frowned.

'What are you talking about?'

I asked and she laughed again.

**'You like him.'**

She said and I felt my face heat up at the thought and immediately denied it. Yuu laughed before disappearing back into her cage. Her random moments of popping in and talking to me are really starting to get on my nerves.

"No. Please!"

I looked up at the sound of the Rain ninja begging for their lives. I looked back at Gaara to see he had his hands raised and I watched as sand encased around the bodies of all three Rain ninja all the way up the their heads, but left that exposed.

"Please! Have mercy!"

One of them yelled, but Gaara just glared at them and closed his fists.

"Sand Coffin, Sand Burial!"

I watched in shock as Gaara easily killed the three ninja. The scroll dropped to the ground and Kankuro went and picked it up.

"Lucky for us they had an Earth scroll."

He said with a smirk as he walked back over to Temari and Gaara.

"Come on, let's head to the tower."

He said, but Gaara glared at him.

"No, it's not enough."

I heard Gaara say and noticed instantly that Temari and Kankuro both froze.

"C-Come on Gaara, we've got both the scrolls. Let's just go."

Kankuro said and I could tell he was afraid.

"No."

Gaara said as he raised his hand again, but this time it was pointed at where me, Yui, and Ji were hiding.

"Ah!"

I heard Yui and Ji both cry out and turned to see them start to be covered in sand.

'Oh shit.'

I thought before I stood up and stared at Gaara.

"Woah! We aren't your enemies, no need to kill us."

I said and noticed that Gaara simply narrowed his eyes at me and I heard my teammates' strangled cries as the sand crept further up their bodies.

"But you are our enemies."

Gaara said and I looked at him in shock. I didn't know him all that well, but right now he sounded so ruthless. So, evil.

**'You were like that once too, remember?'**

Yuu asked and I shivered as flashes of when I used to live for the bloodlust went through my mind. That was before I'd gotten control, even at a young age I wanted nothing but to kill.

'Still, if he doesn't let them go I'm gonna hurt him.'

I thought back and saw Yuu smile.

**'Are you sure you can? You aren't too attached?'**

Yuu asked and I growled at her.

"Kimi!"

I heard Yui cry out and turned to see they were almost completely covered in sand. I turned back towards Gaara and threw a kunai at his feet.

"Let them go."

I said and I saw Temari and Kankuro's eyes go wide. They were obviously afraid of Gaara, but I wasn't. I don't give a damn who you are, you mess with my teammates and my friends and I _will_ kill you. No questions asked.

"Or what?"

Gaara asked and I saw sand cover both Yui and Ji's heads and I lost it and charged at Gaara. His sand tried to block me, but I was too quick. I grabbed him by the shoulders and forced him to the ground, breaking his concentration. I heard both Yui and Ji fall back to the ground, gasping for air but my focus was purely on Gaara as I held a kunai to his throat and pinned him down to the forest floor.

"I may be like you and I may understand you, but let's get one thing straight."

I said as I pressed the kunai closer to his neck and I noticed that his eyes widened just a bit.

"If you _ever_ mess with my teammates or my friends again I won't hesitate to kill you. I hold very few things dear to me, and I protect those things with my life."

I said before jumping up off him and stepping back a few feet. I saw Temari and Kankuro looking at me with wide eyes, but I kept my gaze on Gaara. I stared him in the eyes a couple more seconds before appearing next to Yui and Ji and helping them to their feet. I didn't even look back as I jumped from the forest floor to the trees with one destination in mind. The tower.


	8. Chapter 8

-Kankuro-

I stared at where Kimiko had taken off in complete and utter shock. Not only had she yelled at him, but she had managed to get past his sand shield and hold a kunai to his throat and him not even do anything about it.

"What did she mean when she said she was like you?"

Temari asked Gaara after he got to his feet. I had been wondering that too, but I was too afraid to ask.

"It doesn't matter."

Gaara said before he started off in the direction of the tower. I looked at Temari who looked at me in return and shrugged before taking off after him. I sighed and shook my head before following.

'Five days of this. I'm either going to die from stress or by Gaara killing me.'

I thought as I followed my siblings. I couldn't keep my thoughts off Kimiko.

-Ji-

Kimi was supporting Yui and I as she jumped through the forest towards the tower. I was barely able to move, my body and mind were still going crazy from my near death experience not even moments ago.

"Kimi….please, can we stop?"

I asked and she looked down at me before stopping and helping me and Yui to sit down. I leaned against the trunk of the three we were on and noticed instantly that Kimi was upset. I'd never seen her fly off the handle like that, she usually had such control, but then again no one's ever really threatened us like that before. We hadn't been expecting that Gaara kid to turn on us, we weren't even bothering them. But when Yui and I felt sand wrapping around us we did the only thing we could do, call out for Kimi's help. I could still feel the grains of his sand wrapping around me even though I knew it was gone. I looked over to see Yui sitting with his knees up to his chest, his eyes wide, and he was rocking himself back and forth. I hadn't seen him that shook up since the day our mother was killed. I reached over and pulled him to me and brushed his hair back.

"Shh, it's okay Yui. It's okay."

I said to calm him down. After a while he relaxed and stopped shaking, but his eyes were still wide. I didn't even want to think about what would have happened had Kimi not charged at him like she did. I looked up and saw Kimi looking at us and her eyes narrowed when she saw the state Yui was in. She wasn't upset, she was pissed and I for one was extremely glad I wasn't the one she was pissed at.

"Come on, I want to get there before nightfall."

She said and I didn't say anything as I stood and pulled Yui onto my back. He simply whimpered and held tightly onto my clothes. I sighed before taking off after Kimi.

-Kimi-

We reached the tower in a matter of hours. It was deserted, but I didn't care. I knew there were beds upstairs and Ji followed me. I had him take a bath and make sure Yui did as well. I waited outside until Ji was done and helped him take Yui to one of the bedrooms. I picked one at the very end of the hall as far away from any of the others as possible. Ji laid Yui down and pulled the cover up over him and I frowned when I saw him curl up into a ball, his eyes still wide with fear. I'd never seen Yui like that before. He was never this scared about anything, the only time I'd ever even seen him scared of something was the time when I was teaching him how to walk on water and he didn't know how to swim. I heard Ji softly whispering soothing words to his brother and looked up when he came over to me.

"I finally got him to go to sleep."

He said and I nodded as I walked out of the room.

"I'm sorry, we should have kept going."

I said and I heard Ji sigh as he followed me down the hallway.

"Don't say that Kimi. How were you supposed to know something like this would have happened?"

He asked and I growled.

"It doesn't matter if I knew or not. I'm the leader of this team and look what I let happen!"

I snapped and he looked at me with sad eyes.

"We don't blame you Kimi. We'd never blame you. We think of you as our sister and family sticks together."

He said and I looked away.

"I've never seen him so scared Yuji."

I said, using his full name. His eyes widened for a second before he pulled me into a hug.

"He usually never is. The only other time he's been like this was when our mother was killed right infront of us. We hid in the closet and ninja from the land of waves came into our house and killed our mother right infront of us. He was in the state you saw before for months."

He said and I froze in his arms. How could I have let them get in a situation like this?

"Don't worry though. If I know Yuichi, and I do, he'll be better by morning."

He said and I simply nodded. I felt his arms tighten around me in a comforting hug and relished in it before I felt the presence of the one who was responsible for Yui's condition. I narrowed my eyes and growled angrily.

"K-Kimi?"

Ji asked as he stepped back and looked at me.

"I'm going to kill him."

I said before taking off for the stairs. I wasn't running, I was taking my time but Ji had to run to keep up with me.

"Kimi, you don't have to do this. Yui will be fine, I'm telling you."

He said trying to reason with me, but I wasn't listening. I could feel my control over Yuu's power slipping and felt it mix with my own. I could feel my teeth lengthen to fangs and my fingernails sharpen to claws.

"Kimi, please calm down and think about this a minute!"

Ji yelled after me, but I just kept going down the stairs. I reached the base floor and started heading in the direction that Gaara's chakra was coming from.

-Gaara-

Kankuro, Temari and I had just walked into the tower when I heard someone yelling.

"Kimi, please calm down and think about this a minute!"

I turned in the direction it was coming from and saw Kimiko, but something was different. Her chakra was stronger than normal, it was mixed with something else and I could tell she was upset.

"Why? Why should I think about it!"

She snapped at the black haired boy who was following her. He was obviously trying to reason with her not to do whatever she was planning on doing.

"Because you know you don't really want to do this!"

The boy, who's name I believe was Ji, said and Kimiko turned to glare at him and it was then that I noticed the white chakra flaring about her in waves.

"Look what almost happened! Look at what he did to Yuichi! You can't tell me that doesn't upset you!"

She yelled and I flinched as I somewhat got an idea of what they were arguing about.

"Of course it upsets me, but I know that if you did something right now with your emotions the way they are that you'll regret it."

Ji said and I noticed that Kimiko froze for a moment before she growled and turned away. I saw her eyes in that instant. They weren't her normal ice blue, they were completely white with no pupils at all.

'What's going on with her?'

I wondered as I watched Ji run up to her and turn her to look at him.

**'Her emotions are running whild and her control over her beast is slipping.'**

Shukaku said and I blinked in shock.

"Because I'm going to do anything I can to protect those I love! I don't care who it is, if they threaten the people I love then I won't show them mercy! Why are you so against me on this!"

Kimiko's voice snapped me out of the conversation I was having with Shukaku and I looked up to see Kimiko completely surrounded by the white chakra and it was getting worse. I could almost make out the form of a wolf within the swarming chakra.

"Because you know that Yui wouldn't want you to do anything like this!"

Ji yelled and Kimiko just glared at him before turning around. When she saw me I heard a growl before she was ontop of me again, but this time instead of a kunai pressed to my throat it was her claws.

"Kimi!"

I heard Ji yelled, but she didn't hear him.

"Gaara!"

Temari and Kankuro yelled in unison, but I ignored them and kept my eyes trained on Kimiko who was glaring at me so intensely that I was sure if looks could kill that I'd be dead despite having Shukaku inside me.

She raised her hands and was about to deliver the final blow when a new voice called out her name. At first she didn't hear it, but then they yelled again and much louder.

"Kimiko, stop!"

She froze that time and turned to see who had called her name. I followed her gaze and saw it was the other black haired boy that had been traveling with her.

"Y-Yui?"

She asked and I was shocked when she instantly reverted back to her normal self, but she didn't get off me.

"Stop it Kimiko."

Yui said as he walked down the stairs and walked towards her, but Ji stopped him before he got too close.

"Why? Why shouldn't I kill him? He was going to kill you two and take you away from me."

Kimiko said and I could hear the tears in her voice although they didn't show.

"Because you know you'd regret it."

He said, repeating what his brother had said.

"And because I don't want you to."

He said and I felt Kimiko freeze above me.

"Kimiko, he is like you and so you should understand better than anyone about the bloodlust. You got control of it, he didn't. That's all that happened earlier, but you stopped it. You don't have to do anything else."

Yui said and I looked up at Kimiko to see her eyes soften and all of her anger fade away.

"It's alright."

Yui said and beckoned her to come over to him. She got off me slowly and walked over to them. Yui and Ji both moved her towards the stairs to go upstairs, but she stopped and turned back to look at me. I still hadn't gotten up off the floor.

"We'll settle this in the final stage of the Chuunin Exams, Gaara of the Sands."

Kimiko said before she and her three teammates disappeared upstairs. I just stared at where she'd been in shock before slowly getting to my feet.

"Holy shit that was scary."

Kankuro said and I couldn't help but agree with him, even if it was just in my mind. I followed my siblings up the stairs and to an empty room in silence. I couldn't get to sleep though, I couldn't get Kimiko off my mind or how my chest hurt because she was mad at me. None of it made any sense. Finally I decided to just go to the roof and wait for morning.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Her beast does talk some sense into her. I'm sorry if you guys don't like this. And keep in mind there are of course going to be some altercations since this is a fanfic. Please read and review

* * *

**The first day of the final part of the Chuunin Exams...**

Yui-

I could tell that Kimi was still angry about what had happened in the Forest of Death, but she really had no reason to be. I mean, I understand that she doesn't want to lose me or Yuji, but she's taking it a little too far. But no matter what I say she won't listen, but that doesn't mean I'm going to stop trying to talk her out of it.

"Kimi, are you still going to go all out on Gaara if you two face off in the ring?"

I asked and she just gave me a look that said 'what do you think?' and I sighed.

"I was afraid of that."

I said before taking a deep breath and looking at her.

"Listen Kimi, you don't have to do anything. Ji and I are both fine, it's over and done with. Just let it go."

I said and she glared at me.

"Not until I show him I'm serious about protecting those I hold dear with my life. I'm going to make him regret attacking you two."

She said and I sighed as I realized she wasn't going to change her mind.

"Fine, go all suicidal on us. But did you ever think that you acting this way towards him isn't helping anything?"

I asked and she looked at me confused.

"What do you mean?"

She asked and I sighed.

"He already had an unstable childhood right? Well so did you. He met you and you two are so alike so maybe he thought he'd finally found someone who didn't want to kill him. But now, you are bent on showing him that you'd kill him with no problem. Think about it from his point of view. If you were in that situation, how would you feel?"

I asked and her eyes widened before she shook her head and glared at me.

"I don't care. He's still going to be sorry for what he almost did."

She said before walking away and I sighed as I watched her walk away.

"Forget about it Yui. You know as well as I do that there's no reasoning with her once she's made up her mind."

Ji said and I sighed again.

"I know, but I can't help but think this isn't going to end so great."

I said and he simply nodded.

* * *

-Kimi-

'I don't care what he thinks. He shouldn't have done what he did.'

I thought as I walked down the hallway, away from everyone else.

**'As much as I understand how much you want to protect Yui and Ji, you don't think you're going just a little overboard with this?'**

Yuu asked and I stopped and glared at the wall since I couldn't really glare at her.

'No, I'm not!'

I snapped and heard her sigh.

**'Think about what Yui said. He had a point for once. Out of everyone you should understand what it's been like for Gaara because you've had a similar childhood. People you thought loved you and were your friends suddenly wanted to use or kill you. All the people you held dear suddenly turned against you.'**

She said and I growled.

'I don't need a replay of my life. I lived it, I know what happened!'

I snapped and heard Yuu sigh.

**'Yes, but listen anyways.'**

She said and when I didn't say anything in response she continued.

**'How do you think Gaara felt after all that? Probably the same way you did, alone. And you know what loneliness can do to a person. Now, think back to how you felt when Yui and Ji came into your life.'**

She said and I did.

'What's your point?'

I asked and saw Yuu smile at me sadly.

**'That is probably how Gaara felt when he realized you had a past just like his. He might not have shown it, he might not have even realized it himself, but he was relieved that he wasn't alone. That fact alone probably lifted a great weight off his shoulders and made it seem possible that not everyone he gets close to wants to kill him.'**

She said and I thought about what she was saying. It was starting to make sense.

**'Now think of this. Think if because of one incident where you couldn't control something that Yui and Ji suddenly turned on you and were trying to kill you. How would you feel?'**

Yuu asked and I scoffed.

'That will never happen.'

**'Just imagine it!'**

Yuu growled at me and I did as she said and frowned.

**'Exactly. That is how Gaara is feeling right now. He felt like because your pasts were similar that it would be alright if he let you close. Even if you two haven't realized it, he has let you in and with you now wanting to kill him that is most likely making him feel like all hope is lost again, making him feel alone once more. I'm not telling you what you should or shouldn't do because that is ultimately up to you. All I'm saying is think about what you're doing before you do it.'**

Yuu said before going back inside her cage. I stared at the wall in shock. I hadn't thought of it like that at all. I was just trying to protect Yui and Ji and my emotions got in the way.

'Oh my God what have I done?'

I wondered, but before I could think about it anymore the Hokage's voice came on over the speakers and said for us all to get inside the arena. The final stage of the Chuunin exams was about to begin.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Okay, now things start to get interesting. I promise. Read and review an I'll update when I can. Also, I think I've finally decided who she'll be with but you guys have to wait to find out. Review!

* * *

-Ji-

I saw Yui looking around and I couldn't help but look at the door every once in a while myself. Kimiko was nowhere to be seen and we weren't sure if she was still thinking off her emotions or if she'd finally come to her senses. I mean, sure I was upset with the Sand genin for what he had almost done to me and my brother, but it was in the past and Kimi had managed to stop it in time. If Yui had gotten over it, then so had I.

Just as the Hokage made his way to address everyone the door opened and Kimiko came in and grabbed a seat between Yui and I.

"Now that everyone is here, let's being."

He said and started explaining how the final part of the exam would go. I turned to Kimi who looked, surprisingly, more rational than before.

"Kimi, are you okay?"

Yui asked and she smiled at him before nodding.

"Yes. Sorry about before. You were right Yui, I shouldn't have let my emotions rule me like that. If you're over it, then so am I."

She said and my brother and I both looked at her in complete shock before smiling at her, glad to have the old Kimiko back.

"Now, without further ado…"

The Hokage said, getting everyone's attentions.

"Let the final stage of the Chuunin Exams begin!"

He said then took his seat. The screen above the arena lit up and randomly started shuffling names for the first battle. It stopped and I looked up to see it wasn't anyone from our team. It was between Kankuro and someone I didn't even care about. Then Temari and TenTen with Temari coming out on top. Gaara faced off against Rock Lee and it was over with Lee having a broken arm and leg. It continued that way for a while. It would shuffle, there would be a fight, a victor, then it would shuffle again. The Hokage had said this part of the exam might take several days. I was just hoping that Yui, Kimi, and I got to go before the day was over. The board shuffled again and when everything got quiet I looked up to see who the next fight was to be between. My heart stopped when I saw it was Kimiko and Gaara. That wasn't supposed to be able to happen, he had already fought, but I looked over to see Kimiko walking over to the railing and hurdling herself over the edge and landing in a crouch in the ring. I ran over to the railing with Yui right by my side. I saw Gaara appear in the ring in a wave of sand and the Hokage stood up.

"Are you willing to fight?"

He asked Gaara who simply nodded. I looked between Kimiko and Gaara and couldn't help but feel worried. I glanced up at Gaara's siblings and saw they had the same look on their faces.

'Kimi, please be careful.'

I thought as the match was officially started.

* * *

-Kimi-

When I saw that the next match was between me and Gaara I was shocked considering he'd already fought, but shrugged it off and walked up to the rail and hopped over it and landed in the ring. I straightened back up and stared right at Gaara who was looking at me with a mix of confusion and anger. He disappeared from his spot beside his siblings and appeared in the ring across from me in a wave of sand. The Hokage stood and asked if Gaara still wanted to fight and he nodded. Then the battle was declared to have started, but neither Gaara nor I moved. I could feel the underlying emotions in Gaara's chakra and sighed when I realized I was most likely the cause of them.

"Either start the fight or you're both disqualified."

The proctor said and I rolled my eyes at him before looking back at Gaara. I drew kunai from my pouch and ran towards him. I jumped in the air and threw them at him as I landed behind him. As expected his sand blocked it and he didn't move at all. I threw a shuriken bomb at my feet to shroud the both of us in smoke. I heard the crowd start to complain about not being able to see anything, but that was exactly what I wanted. I ran through the smoke till I was face to face with Gaara, or as close as I could get with his sand blocking me from getting too close. He glared at me and I smiled at him which made his eyes widened in shock.

"What happened to you wanting to finish things?"

He asked in a guarded tone and I smiled at him again.

"I decided not to let my emotions rule me. I overreacted, but you do have to understand Gaara. I don't have many people in my life that I hold dear and love and I will do everything in my power to protect those people, even if that means I have to give my life so that they may live."

I said and he just stared at me.

"So then what now?"

He asked and I laughed slightly at his confused tone which made him narrow his eyes at me.

"We fight, but not to the death."

I said and he blinked at me in surprise before nodding.

"But don't you hold anything back just because I'm a girl."

I said to him sternly before smiling and jumping out of the cloud of smoke. I landed in a crouch, kunai at the ready as the smoke slowly started to clear. Once it was fully gone and I could clearly see Gaara again I finally decided to get serious. This was, after all, part of the Chuunin Exams.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: This is how I want things to go. It will sort of follow the anime and sort of not. I mean, if i went with the anime exactly then that wouldn't really be a fanfiction now would it? Read and review, I'll update when I can.

* * *

-Kimi-

I couldn't help but smile as I charged at Gaara and threw my kunai. His sand blocked it easily and I looped around till I was behind him. I quickly signed and waited until he turned around before activating my jutsu.

"Freeze, Ice Plain Jutsu!"

I called out before thrusting my hand into the ground and the entire floor was covered in a thick sheet of ice. I heard gasps from the watching ninja and just smiled before lifting my hand from the ground and pulling out another kunai, but this time I wasn't going to throw it. I was tired of long ranged attacks.

I stepped onto the ice and smiled at being back on familiar ground. I looked up and saw Yui and Ji looking at me in shock, then I looked over to Gaara's siblings who were looking at me the same way. I smiled before turning my attention back to Gaara.

"Alright then, let's have some fun."

I said before charging at him. I signed with one hand as I ran. I skid to a stop and jumped out of the way of his attacks. I landed and finished my jutsu.

"Ice Clone Jutsu!"

I called out and suddenly there were about ten more of me. They each pulled a kunai and I smiled at Gaara who was glaring at me. I'd left him that small little circle he was standing in when I covered the ground in ice. That was the only place he could go unless he wanted to slip or allow me to capture him. I smiled again before charging at him.

* * *

-Temari-

I watched in awe as Kimiko covered the entire ground in ice except for a small space surrounding Gaara. She left him such small space, but that would be all he needed. I thought it would be over when she started running towards him, but she effortlessly dodged his attacks and didn't once slip on the ice covered ground. She signed with one hand while holding a kunai in the other and after having dodged Gaara's attacks called out the name of yet another jutsu. Suddenly there were about ten more of her and they all pulled a kunai. She smiled at him before they all charged. Gaara attacked the ones closest to him, but they all turned out to be clones and they disappeared. I watched as Gaara looked around trying to find her and my eyes widened when I saw her coming up behind him. She distracted him with her clones while she ran at him from behind. She did like she had in the forest and got past his sand shield and grabbed his shoulders as she pushed him to the ground. I saw the look of utter shock on Gaara's face as he was forced to the ground. He rolled over and struck out with his hand and it collided with Kimiko's side and she grimaced, but didn't stop in her attack. That was the first time Gaara had ever actually fought himself, instead of using his sand. She smiled down at him, but it wasn't a cocky, mocking smile, it was a smile of someone who was having fun.

'Just what is with that girl?'

I wondered as I continued to watch the fight. Gaara had managed to knock the kunai out of her hand and he refused to let her reach for another weapon, but she was straddling his waist and refused to let him up. He tried to get her off him by using his sand, but each time it got close to her it got blocked by a wall of ice.

'It's like she controls ice just as easily as Gaara controls sand.'

I thought and my eyes widened as I realized that was exactly how it was. But unlike Gaara who had to carry his sand around with him she seemed to be able to use her chakra to create the ice out of thin air, but that requires a lot of chakra.

'Just how strong is she?'

I wondered as I continued to watch Gaara and her struggle to gain the upper hand, but what shocked me was the fact that Gaara didn't have a hateful look on his face like he usually did when fighting, it looked like he was actually enjoying himself.

"Kankuro, do you see the look on Gaara's face?"

I asked him and he nodded in as much disbelief as I was.

"But that can't be right?"

He asked, but I didn't have an answer for him. The crowd of ninja gasped when Gaara grabbed Kimiko by her arms and kicked her overhead so she landed on her back and he moved quickly so that _he_ was pinning _her_ down. He stared intently down at her, it wasn't a glare, but to anyone else it would have looked like one since they didn't know Gaara like I did. But Kimiko didn't flinch or anything, instead she smiled up at him.

Suddenly part of the ceiling gave way and Sand ninja came into the arena. I looked around and realized our mission was coming to a close. Everyone had been put to sleep and Kankuro was being led out of the building. I turned to look back in the arena to see Gaara and Kimiko both gone. I shook my head before following after Kankuro and heading back to Suna.

* * *

-Kimi-

One moment I was fighting with Gaara and he had managed to gain the upper hand when the ceiling gave in and ninja were suddenly everywhere. There was a cloud of smoke and when it cleared Gaara was gone. I looked around and noticed that the entire crowd of people watching were asleep including Yui and Ji, and that the Hokage was gone.

'Fuck.'

I thought before heading outside. I could feel Gaara and his siblings' chakra getting farther and farther away. As I got outside I looked towards the forest because I felt Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke's chakra from within. I ran inside and jumped up to the trees to catch up with them faster. As I got closer I could feel the presence of a tailed beast.

'Which one is it? I can't tell.'

I said as I pushed myself to go faster. Even though I couldn't tell which one it was I had a feeling that it wasn't the Kyuubi.

**'It's Shukaku. Something must have happened to make Gaara's control slip.'**

Yuu said and I cursed as she confirmed what I thought. I got to a clearing and saw Sasuke trying to get Sakura, who was pinned to a tree trunk by a giant arm of sand that was slowly constricting around her, down.

"Kimiko!"

Sasuke asked in surprise and I simply nodded to him.

"Can you help me get her down?"

He asked me and I could hear the underlying panic in his voice. I looked towards where I felt Naruto and Gaara's chakra before looking back at him.

"Yeah, but you two have to stay here."

I said and once he nodded I used my ice to freeze the sand constricting Sakura and I made it shatter and fall away. Sasuke caught her before she could hit the ground and turned towards me, but I turned around and headed deeper into the forest. Whatever happened to make Gaara lost control over Shukaku I was going to help him get it back.

* * *

-Naruto-

I followed after Gaara after he'd attacked Sakura. He had lost it and was starting to transform. I stopped when I saw he had stopped on a tree branch and was waiting for me. Both his arms had transformed and half his face.

"I know what it's like."

I said, saying the first thing that came to my mind hoping to be able to get Gaara to come back and stop Shukaku from taking full control.

"I know what it's like to be shunned by the people around you. It's hurts and makes you feel alone. But it doesn't have to be that way."

I said and he growled at me before more sand covered his body and he started to transform again.

'Shit.'

I thought as I tried to think of something else to say, but wasn't able to when he suddenly lunged at me. I drew my kunai and defended myself.

"Let Sakura go Gaara and we can settle this ourselves!"

I yelled and he smirked at me before charging at me again.

"You don't have to fight Gaara! You don't have to kill to feel alive!"

I yelled as he threw me against the bark of a tree. I groaned as the wind got knocked out of me but got to my feet and charged at him.

"There are other things that can make you feel alive! Like friends and family!"

I yelled and he smacked me with his tail and I went flying into the trees again. I was about to hit the trunk of a rather large tree at a really fast speed when I suddenly stopped. I opened my eyes to see the white haired girl that had been fighting with Gaara.

"Kimiko!"

I said in surprise and she looked down at me before smiling. She helped me up onto the branch she was on before taking the kunai from my hand.

"I got this."

She said.

"But he has Sakura pinned to a-"

I started, but she cut me off.

"Sakura's fine Naruto. Let me handle this."

She said and I nodded reluctantly. She smiled before jumping down from the branch we were in and appearing before Gaara. I watched as Gaara stopped transforming and seemed to be watching her intently.

"Which one of you is in control!"

She called up to him which made me look at her confused.

"Shukaku or Gaara?"

She asked and I finally understood what she meant.

"**I am."**

Gaara said, although his voice was darker and held more malice than usual.

"I see, so I would be correct in saying I'm speaking with Shukaku correct?"

She asked and Gaara smirked at her.

"**You would be correct.**"

Gaara said and I saw Kimiko nod before she disappeared again. I looked around trying to find her only to spot her on the branch right next to him.

'What the hell is she doing?'

I wondered as I watched them intently.

* * *

-Kimi-

Once I got my answer I jumped up so I was on the same branch as Gaara. He was only half transformed which meant I might still have a chance to get him back.

"You know, I'd really like to talk to Gaara. Think you could let him have control again?"

I asked Shukaku and he growled at me.

**"Why would I do that? You have confused us greatly girl."**

He said and I looked at him confused though I had an idea what he was talking about considering I believe Yuu had already given me a lecture about it.

"What do you mean?"

I asked anyway. Maybe if I distracted him I'd figure up a way to get Gaara back.

**"You gave my host hope that he finally found someone who wouldn't turn on him, then you do."**

Shukaku said and I nod in understanding.

"Oh. Well, you should understand that I didn't take too kindly to him almost killing my teammates."

I said and saw Shukaku's eyes narrow.

"Don't look at me like that!"

I snapped at him and his eyes widened just a bit.

"I understand all too well about the bloodlust of a host, especially a host with a childhood like Gaara's and having a beast as….bloodthirsty as you. But that doesn't give him any right to randomly decide to attack my teammates. I would have reacted the same way had it been Naruto, Shikamaru, or anybody else. It wasn't solely targeted at Gaara. It's at people who harm those close to me in general."

I said and Shukaku looked at me thoughtfully.

**"Why do you care what happens to my host after he did what he did?"**

Shukaku asked and I sighed.

"As I told him in the ring. I'm over it and I shouldn't have let my emotions get the best of me."

I said as I took a step closer towards him.

"Besides…."

I said taking another step, but stopped when he growled at me.

"As I've already told you both, we're a lot alike so I'm not going to let Gaara go through this alone."

I said and Shukaku growled at me before attacking me with his tail. I smirked as I jumped out of the way and threw Naruto's kunai at him which he blocked with his arm. Sand started to take over more of Gaara's body and I heard him scream in agony.

'Oh hell no you don't. Don't you even think about it you damn raccoon.'

I thought before starting to sign as I ran towards him. I jumped and grabbed ahold of the branch Gaara was crouched on.

"Ice Hold, Ice Prison Jutsu!"

I called out and ice completely covered the branch he was on and wrapped around his hands and feet so he couldn't move. He tried to get free, but it was no use. Shukaku send sand after me, but I blocked it easily with my ice. I didn't like to flaunt the fact that I could easily manipulate my ice like Gaara could his sand, but I had to admit it really came in handy sometimes.

"Gaara!"

I heard Naruto yell and turned to look at him confused.

"Gaara, if you're in there you have to fight this! Don't let him take control of you!"

Naruto yelled and I suddenly realized what he was trying to do. He was trying to reach Gaara so he could help us fight against Shukaku.

"**It's no use. He's too far gone."**

Shukaku said while laughing at us. Then more sand covered Gaara's body and after a while he was gone completely. I felt his chakra change tremendously and cursed under my breath as I realized what was going on.

I jumped up to the branch where Naruto was and grabbed him and jumped out of the way just as my ice prison jutsu was shattered and sand covered everything.

"Kimiko, what do we do!"

Naruto asked and I sighed as I stopped once we were a safe distance away and turned back to see a fully transformed Shukaku standing in the middle of the forest. He lifted his head and cried out. The forest shook from the vibrations and birds flew away from the threat.

"Kimiko!"

Naruto yelled and I looked at him before looking back at Shukaku. It was then that I saw the patch of red ontop of his head and smiled.

"I got an idea. Gaara is ontop of Shukaku's head meaning he still has some sort of control. If we can get close enough to him, then one of us will have to find some way to get Gaara to wake back up."

I said and Naruto nodded, but then looked at me confused.

"He's asleep?"

He asked confused and I face palmed.

"No Naruto. He is awake, but his mind isn't in control."

I said and Naruto nodded in understanding.

"Okay, so what do we do?"

He asked and I smiled at him before telling him my plan.

"You got all that?"

I asked and he nodded one of his big, goofy grins before jumping from the tree we were in and headed towards Shukaku.

'I just hope this works.'

I thought before kicking off from the branch and heading towards Shukaku from another direction.


	12. Chapter 12

-Kimi-

I kept my eyes on Shukaku as I raced towards him. I saw a flash of blonde and looked up to see Naruto sailing through the air straight towards Gaara.

"What the hell is he thinking?"

I wondered aloud to myself before kicking off and hurrying towards them. I was shocked that he managed to get so close to him, but what made me stop and stare at them in complete shock was when Naruto head butted Gaara. I'm not really sure what happened after that, all I know is that Naruto got knocked to the ground quite forcefully by Shukaku's clawed hand and then disappeared and Gaara fell towards the ground. I tried to get to him, but I was too far away. I closed my eyes not wanting to see him collide with the earth. After a while I opened my eyes to see him on the ground and the dirt beneath him was softened by sand. I breathed a sigh of relief as I looked at the two people on the ground and saw they were okay. It was then that I noticed Naruto was crawling towards Gaara inch by inch using only his chin to move.

"You're not alone in this. I know it's painful, but there are other ways to feel alive other than killing. There are friends and family that make it all easier, they help you realize you're not as alone as you think. I know it hurts, but we can make it better."

He said to Gaara as he inched closer. I saw the pained look in Gaara's eyes and saw he was still confused. I jumped down and landed next to Naruto.

"That's enough."

I said and he looked at me confused.

"But-"

He started, but I cut him off.

"It's fine Naruto, you've done enough. Rest."

I said and he nodded before laying his head down and closing his eyes. I walked over to Gaara who was looking at me. I saw his eyes look me up and down and saw the pained look in his eyes increase when he saw how beat up I was. It wasn't really from him so much as from the flying debris in the forest.

"He's right you know Gaara, there are people out there that can make it better."

I said as I walked closer to him and stopped infront of him. He looked up at me with confusion and hurt in his teal colored eyes.

"No there's not. No one cares. Even you didn't care."

He said and looked away from me. I sighed and knelt down so I could look at him easily.

"That's not true Gaara. Naruto cares, your brother and sister care. I care."

I said and his eyes flashed to me for a second before moving away again.

"No you don't. What reason would you have for caring?"

He asked and I growled and grabbed his chin to make him look at me.

"I've told you before haven't I?"

I asked and he looked at me confused.

"I care about those I hold dear and will risk everything to keep them safe."

I said and he glared at me.

"What does that have to do with me?"

He asked and I smiled softly at him.

"Because, I care about you Gaara. I hold very few things close to my heart, and you're one of them."

I said before leaning forward and pressing my lips to the kanji on his forehead. I pulled back and smiled at him before getting to my feet and looking at the bushes behind him.

"Make sure you take good care of him."

I said before walking over to a now unconscious Naruto and pulling him to his feet. I threw his arm over my shoulder and took off back towards Konoha.

* * *

-Kankuro-

"How did she know we were here?"

I asked as Temari and I stepped out of the brush and over to Gaara.

"I don't know."

She said as we picked Gaara up and held up between the two of us.

"Are you okay Gaara?"

Temari asked and I noticed that he had a far away look on his face. I turned and looked at where Kimiko and Naruto had gone and couldn't help but feel grateful towards them. They had managed to get Gaara back even after Shukaku had taken control.

'That girl is truly remarkable.'

I thought as I helped Temari get Gaara back to Suna.

Once we'd put Gaara in a hospital room we reported back for our next mission.

"You three are to go back and finish the Chuunin Exams, Gaara is to fight against Sasuke and kill him. You two's fights don't matter, all that matters is Gaara's fight with Sasuke. Go back as soon as he can get back on his feet."

The ANBU said and we both nodded before leaving and heading to see if Gaara was ok.

"Why do we do what they say again?"

I asked Temari as we walked down the halls.

"Because our father is still Kazekage. Until that changes we have to do what they say."

Temari said and I sighed as we reached the room where we'd left Gaara to rest. We pushed open the door and we stopped when we saw Gaara sitting up on the cot we'd laid him down on with a hand pressed to the kanji on his forehead. That faraway look was still in his eyes.

"Gaara?"

Temari asked and his head shot up to us, but he didn't glare at us. Instead, it seemed like he was actually looking at us for the first time.

* * *

-Gaara-

I couldn't understand it. When Kimiko had said what she did it made my heart skip a beat, then when she leaned forward and kissed my scar I felt happy for a split moment. The whole time while Temari and Kankuro were taking me back to Suna I couldn't help but feel warmth from where she'd kissed me.

'Why do I feel like this?'

I wondered as I reached up and touched where her lips had been.

**'That girl is different than I had thought.'**

Shukaku said and I actually didn't mind the fact that he'd chosen to surface at that moment. I was too lost to care.

'How so?'

I asked and saw him smile within my mind.

**'We had been under the impression she was like everyone else when she had turned on us, but she just proved she's not. She actually…..cares.'**

Shukaku said and that simple word made my heart beat slightly faster.

'What's wrong with me? Why am I acting like this? Why am I so confused?'

I asked completely lost.

**'You'll just have to figure that out yourself.'**

He said before going back into his cage.

"Gaara?"

I heard Temari say and looked up to see her and Kankuro standing in the doorway. I looked at them for the first time and noticed that what Kimiko said seemed to be true. I could clearly see the look of worry on both Temari and Kankuro's faces.

"Are you alright?"

She asked as she and Kankuro walked into the room.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

I said as I got to my feet.

"Good. We need to go back and finish the Chuunin Exams."

Kankuro said and I inwardly sighed. I knew that they wouldn't end the mission there.

"Alright, let's get going."

I said as I headed towards the door and I heard both of them follow. The closer I got to Konoha the more I felt anxious for some reason. I didn't know why, but I had a feeling that I'd know once I got there.


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Hey guys, i decided to skip the bit of them returning and all that. Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari are on their way back and arrive at the same time Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke arrive i just didn't include it. Anyways, enjoy. Read and review.

* * *

-Kimi-

Once I was sure Naruto would be looked after I headed to the hotel Yui, Ji, and I were staying in and sighed when I saw it was empty. I groaned and fell back on one of the beds.

**'What's wrong?'**

Yuu asked and I sighed.

'I'm confused.'

I said and she looked at me confused through her cage.

**'About?'**

She asked and I sighed again.

'I was so relieved when I saw he was okay.'

I said and she continued to look at me confused.

**'Who?'**

'Gaara.'

I said and she smiled.

**'I see.'**

'I mean, when I saw him fighting against those Rain ninja during the second part of the exam I was really worried he'd get hurt, but then I was happy he was okay.'

**'Yes, but then you went all ballistic on him.'**

She said and I groaned at the memory.

'I couldn't help it, he threatened my friends. You know how I am.'

I said and she laughed.

**'Yes, I do.'**

She said and I sighed again.

'When we were fighting I could tell he was enjoying himself, we were actually having fun then we were interrupted. When I saw he was transforming I generally wanted to help him, I wasn't afraid of him because I knew what it was like. When he changed back to normal the look in his eyes hurt me. He looked alone and lost and pained. But when I told him I cared about him the look in his eyes changed to something I couldn't understand, then when I kissed him….'

I said trailing off. I suddenly shot upright with my eyes wide.

"Oh my God!"

I whispered to myself.

'What?'

Yuu asked and I brought my hand up to my lips.

"I kissed him. That was my first kiss, though technically that wasn't a real kiss but still. What does he think about it? What did I mean by it? I just kissed him. I didn't think about it. Ugh!"

I yelled before falling back onto the bed. I heard Yuu laughing at me and frowned.

'Great. I'm glad one of us finds this amusing.'

I said and she smiled at me as she got her laughter under control.

**'It's funny because I can see what you cannot.'**

She said and I glared up at the ceiling since I couldn't glare at her.

'And what's that?'

I asked and she smiled at me.

**'You care for him, more than you care for Yui and Ji or even me.'**

She said and I was going to argue, but stopped when I realized she was right. I'm not sure when it happened, but I had grown to like him.

'Ah shit.'

I groaned and Yuu laughed again.

'Great, now I've got something else to worry about.'

I thought before closing my eyes and trying to relax, but it wasn't going to work. I could just tell.

* * *

-Naruto-

"Are you sure you're alright to be walking around?"

Sakura asked and I smiled at her as we made our way to the arena.

"I'm fine Sakura, believe it!"

I yelled and she sighed at me before turning to Sasuke. He didn't say anything, but I could tell he was grateful we were both okay. We made it up to the balcony and I looked around to see if Kimi was anywhere, I had something really important to tell her.

"I see you're as stubborn as ever."

A soft voice said behind me and I turned around to see Kimi standing there between Ji and Yui with her arms crossed, but a smile on her face.

"Hehe, yeah."

I said rubbing the back of my head.

"So who do you think will be fighting first?"

She asked as she came over and stood next to me as she looked out over the arena.

"We're not sure, it could be anyone."

Sakura said and Kimi nodded, her white hair swaying with the movement.

"Hey…Kimi, can I talk to you?"

I asked and she turned to look at me surprised before nodding and leading the way out into the hallway.

"What'd you want to talk to me about?"

She asked and I blushed slightly. Ever since she told me she was like me I'd liked her even more and more, and I wanted to tell her and see if she felt the same.

"K-Kimi, I wanted to tell you that I…."

I started, but trailed off when she looked up at me confused.

"Tell me what Naruto?"

She asked and I looked her in the eyes and did the first thing that popped into my head. I kissed her.

* * *

-Kimi-

"K-Kimi, I wanted to tell you that I…."

Naruto started, but trailed off for some reason. I noticed he was blushing, but I couldn't understand why.

"Tell me what Naruto?"

I asked and he looked me in the eyes for a minute before he did the last thing I ever would have expected. He kissed me. I was too shocked to do anything at first, but after a while I pushed him back and wiped my mouth.

"What the hell Naruto!"

I yelled and he looked down at his feet.

"I like you Kimi. I like you a lot."

He said and I glared.

"And so that gives you the right to just suddenly kiss someone!"

I snapped and noticed he flinched.

"Naruto, I like you, but not like that."

I said and he continued to look at his feet. I didn't say anything else, I just pushed past him, hitting his shoulder as I went, and walked down the hallway till I thought I was far enough away from him.

"Damn him!"

I cursed to myself as I wiped my mouth from where his lips had been pressed against mine. I felt tears stinging my eyes, but didn't let them fall and I could feel my face was hot.

"Kimi?"

A voice asked from behind me and I turned on instinct to see Hinata standing there.

"Hey Hinata."

I said as I reached up and wiped my eyes.

"What's wrong? Are you okay?"

She asked and I nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

I said, but she didn't believe me and came over to me.

"What happened?"

She asked and I mentally groaned. I knew she liked Naruto, hell the last time I'd checked he liked her back, but apparently that changed.

"Nothing I can't handle. You know Hinata, I think now might be a really good time for you to go and talk to Naruto. You know, tell him how you feel."

I said and she blushed instantly.

"I…I don't know."

She said and I sighed.

"Just go do it alright. Do whatever you have to to prove to him you like him."

I said before pushing her in the direction I'd left Naruto. She looked back at me uncertain, but did as I asked and left me alone. I leaned back against the wall and slid down til I was sitting with my knees up to my chest.

'Dammit, why'd he have to steal my first kiss? I wanted my first kiss to be with Gaara.'

I thought, then blushed immediately as I realized what I'd just thought.

"Fuuuuck."

I said as I rubbed at my mouth vigorously as if that would erase the fact Naruto had kissed me.

"You know, I don't think rubbing your mouth with be able to erase what just happened."

A deep voice said and I froze. I knew that voice, I knew the person it belonged to and I liked them.

I hesitantly looked up to see Gaara standing there with his arms crossed over his chest and a small smirk on his face.

"Oh what do you know?"

I growled as I continued to rub my mouth with the back of my hand.

"I know that if you keep doing that you're going to hurt yourself."

He said and I winced as my mouth started to hurt, like I'd split part of it. I used my tongue to see if I had and winced again when I felt the lower left part of my mouth had a small cut.

"Told you."

He said and I turned to glare up at him, but stopped when I saw he was knelt down right infront of me. I tried to keep the blush from rising to my cheeks, but it didn't work.

"Let me see."

He said suddenly and I looked at him confused.

'Say what?'

I wondered to myself, but was brought back to reality when I felt his hand gently pulling at my arm that was still pressed against my mouth. He lowered it and I instantly put my other arm up to cover my mouth. I don't know why, but I didn't want him to see my mouth. It wasn't because the cut, it was because Naruto had kissed me. I looked at his face and saw that same smirk on his face as he reached up with his other hand and pulled my arm down to my lap. I instantly rolled my lips inward so he couldn't see and I saw him glare at me slightly which only made me blush even more.

"Let me see."

He said again as he reached up with one of his hands and gently held my chin so I was looking directly at him. As soon as I looked into his eyes I couldn't deny him anymore and slowly let my lips go back to normal.

"There it is."

He said looking down at my lips and my heart rate picked up. Why was he being so gentle? Why was he willingly getting this close to me? And more importantly, why isn't he looking away from my lips?

"You know, there's only one way to erase another persons' kiss."

He said seriously and I looked at him confused.

"How?"

I asked softly and he smirked at me as he leaned in close.

"Kiss someone else."

He said just as softly and I blushed as he leaned in even more until our lips were only inches apart.

"Kimi! Yui's about to fight. Where are you!"

I heard Ji's voice coming from down the hall and blushed when Gaara turned in the direction his voice had come from and growled. I smiled and laughed just a bit, making him turn back to me. I leaned up and gently kissed him on the cheek before using my ice to get away from him and appear right infront of Ji as he came into view.

"Sorry, got a little lost."

I said with a smile and Ji looked at me before looking over my shoulder at Gaara.

"Riiight, well come on. Yui's fight is about to start."

He said before turning and walking away.

"Right."

I said, but looked over my shoulder to see Gaara was nowhere in sight. I blushed as I thought about what almost happened before running to catch up to Ji.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Okay, well this is gonna be a little different. It is a fanfiction after all. But things will get interesting so read and review.

* * *

-Kimi-

"What'd we miss?"

I asked Shikamaru as Ji and I joined him and the others.

"Nothing, you're just in time."

He said and I looked down into the arena to see who Yui was going to fight against and my jaw dropped when I saw it was Kankuro.

_'You have **got** to be kidding me.'_

I thought as I looked around until I spotted Temari and Gaara. Temari was looking down into the arena while Gaara was looking straight at me. There was something in his eyes that made it seem like he was trying to tell me something, but what? I turned back to the match when I heard the proctor say to begin. I watched as Yui tried charging at Kankuro, but he easily dodged him. Yui was doing ok, but I could see that Kankuro was getting bored. When he reached behind him for his puppet I knew he was getting serious.

"Yui! Be careful!"

I yelled and he looked up at me before nodding and taking his battle stance again. I could still see he wasn't really taking this seriously.

"Dammit."

I said as I watched Yui barely manage to avoid Crow.

"What's wrong Kimi?"

Sakura asked and I looked at her before looking back at Yui.

"He's underestimating his opponent, he's gonna get hurt."

I said and she looked at me sympathetically.

"He'll just have to learn himself that it's not smart to do that."

She said and I looked up to see Gaara still looking at me. The look in his eye confused me.

"I'll be back."

I said before using my ice to appear next to Gaara. I grabbed his arm and pulled him away without Temari noticing.

"What is it?"

I asked and noticed he looked away.

"Gaara."

I said and he sighed.

"My siblings and I are on a mission to destroy the peace between Suna and Konoha. That's what the first distraction was, but Shukaku took over before I could do anything so we were sent in again to try a second time. This time, if we fail they'll try to kill me. I don't want to hurt you and your two friends so you need to get out of here."

Gaara said and I looked at him in shock. I had not been expecting that.

"Gaara-"

"Gaara, what are you doing!"

Temari snapped as she walked over to us. She glared at me before looking at Gaara. I noticed she flinched when he looked at her.

"Gaara, I'm not going anywhere. You guys don't have to do this."

I said and heard Temari sigh.

"That's just it, we do. Our father is the Kazekage of our village."

She said and I looked at her surprised.

"We have to. One way or another, people will die."

She said before grabbing hold of Gaara's shoulder and they disappeared in a wave of sand.

"Well fuck."

I said before turning to see if Yui was still fighting. He was which means Temari and Gaara just left to go somewhere else.

_'Yuu, help. I don't know what to do.'_

I thought and Yuu stirred from inside her cage.

**'You care for the boy, so show him. Up until now he's believed that the only reason he was alive was to kill. You and Naruto somewhat changed his mind, but not fully. You have to show him that you care for him and would risk anything for him.'**

Yuu said and I sighed.

_'So what? I wait until something happens then go after him like I did before?'_

I asked and saw Yuu nod.

_'Alright, but I have a feeling like I'll need to borrow some of your chakra.'_

I said and she smiled at me.

**'Of course child.'**

She said and I sighed as I watched Yui and Kankuro. I winced when Crow shot kunai at Yui and pinned him to a tree. Most had pierced his arms and legs, though one had pierced his chest. He got down from the tree and went to attack Kankuro, but got stopped by Crow and was pinned down with the puppet ontop of him.

_'Dammit all to hell!'_

I screamed in my mind before I jumped up on the railing and cupped my hands over my mouth.

"Stop goofing around Yui! Take this shit serious or I swear to God I will personally come down there and kick your ass before puppet boy here does it for me!"

I screamed and ignored the looks I got from Sakura and the others. I noticed Kankuro glared up at me, but I looked straight at Yui. He blinked a moment before smirking and I knew he understood what I meant. I climbed down from the railing and watched as Yui used his ice to encase Crow before he made a clone of himself to confuse Kankuro. When he attacked who he thought was Yui the clone disappeared in a puff of smoke and the real Yui appeared behind Kankuro and wrapped him in ice. He couldn't move.

"Winner of the first battle is, Yuichi Takemori!"

The proctor called out and people cheered. I watched as Kankuro glared up at me, then disappeared.

"We will now move on to the next battle. Gaara versus Sasuke."

The proctor called out and I looked up as Gaara appeared in the ring. He looked at me and I saw a pained look in his eyes as if he thought I'd run from him, but to hell if I was going to do that.

**'Be patient. We will wait until their mission starts, then we will go after him.'**

Yuu said and I nodded as I took a deep breath to calm myself.

It didn't take long, Sasuke had used Chidori to try and get past Gaara's defenses and he managed to. The cry that came from Gaara afterwards made my blood chill, then when I saw Sasuke jump back and I saw Shukaku's arm come out of the ball of sand my heart stopped until the sand fell away to show a completely normal looking Gaara except for the fact he was bleeding.

'_I am going to kill Sasuke for that.'_

I thought as I gripped the railing so tightly that it started to bend. Suddenly, there was an explosion where the Hokage was and next thing I know Gaara is being taken away by Temari and Kankuro and Sasuke followed them.

'**Now is the time child. Follow them.'**

Yuu said and I nodded before using my ice to appear on top of the outer wall before jumping down and following Gaara and the others. I easily caught up to Sasuke, but chose to ignore him and go after Gaara. He was hurt and I could tell he wasn't completely sane at the moment. Me, Lee, and Sasuke had been the only three people to actually touch Gaara. Lee was hospitalized and Sasuke got his match interrupted, but Sasuke was the one to draw blood.

"I swear to God if he touches Gaara again I'll kill him."

I said to myself as I sped up to catch up to Temari and her siblings. I hid my chakra as I got close enough to keep them in sight. I watched as they stopped in a clearing to tend to Gaara's wound. I could hear Gaara mumbling to himself about being a good boy and how sorry he was for feeding 'it' bad blood.

_'Yuu, what's wrong with him?'_

I asked concerned as I saw Temari and Kankuro step back to give him some room after having bandaged his wound.

**'He is unstable because he has been hurt and he doesn't have any chakra left to keep Shukaku in his cage.'**

Yuu said and my eyes widened.

_'What! Then how does he plan on doing his mission?'_

I wondered.

**'That's just it. I don't think he's going to.'**

Yuu said and I looked at the three sand siblings confused until I heard them talking amongst themselves.

* * *

-Temari-

"Gaara, are you okay?"

I asked and noticed his mumbling stopped.

"I'm fine."

He said as he got to his feet.

"You should rest. Once you get your chakra back we have to finish the mission."

I said and he glared at me.

"No. I won't be a part of the mission anymore."

He said and I turned to look at him in shock.

"What! But you know what father will do if you don't-"

I started, but he cut me off.

"I don't care. I'm tired of people trying to use me as a weapon."

He said and I sighed.

"I understand that Gaara, but you have to. Kankuro and I don't want to see you attacked. Even if they can't kill you, that won't stop them from trying. We've learned that from the past assassination attempts."

I said and he just stayed quiet.

"Gaara, why are you suddenly-"

I started, but got cut off when a kunai headed straight for me. I didn't have time to block it. I shut my eyes, but nothing happened. I heard the shifting sound of sand and opened my eyes to see Gaara's sand had stopped the kunai from hitting me. I looked at him in shock, but he was glaring at where the kunai had come from. I followed his gaze to see Sasuke.

"Our match got interrupted."

He said with a smirk as he stepped into the clearing.

"You should leave Uchiha."

I said as I pulled my fan from my belt and set it on the ground.

"Right, that's not going to happen."

He said before throwing kunai at me and Kankuro making us jump away from Gaara to avoid them, then he used a clone jutsu to go after Gaara. With his increased speed he was able to hit Gaara's sand and move fast enough that he got close to Gaara. I saw him pull out a kunai as soon as he got close enough to him.

"GAARA!"

I called out, Kankuro and I were too far away to help him and his sand was too slow to react. Suddenly there was the sound of clashing metal, then Sasuke went flying to the other end of the clearing. I looked from Sasuke back to where Gaara was to see the last person I'd expected standing infront of him with a kunai in her hand.

"Kimiko!"


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Sorry it's been so long since I last updated this, but a lot has been going on lately. My dad went in for surgery to try and get rid of the MRSA infection in his system and now they're just trying to drain the last of it from his system. He won't be out for a while, so keep him in your thoughts.

For your guys' information, Kimi's Ice Prision Jutsu is like a...genin level jutsu whereas the one she uses later is more of a Jonin level jutsu which is why it had the effect it did. She is a very powerful ninja, as are Yui and Ji. Anyway, just thought I'd let you guys know that. Read and review, much love,

-Kit

* * *

-Kimi-

I glared at Sasuke as I crouched infront of Gaara.

"Kimiko!"

I heard Temari shout in surprise, but didn't look away from Sasuke who was looking at me in shock before narrowing his eyes and glaring at me as if that would intimidate me. He took a step forward and I threw a kunai at him and it landed inches from his foot making him stop and look up at me.

"Don't _even_ think about it Sasuke."

I said and he smirked at me before taking another step forward. I growled at him and pulled a kunai and held it tightly in my hand.

"Do you really think you're a match for me?"

He asked with a smirk as he took another step closer.

"That depends."

I said and he looked at me curiously.

"On what?"

He asked and I smirked at him.

"If you think _you're_ a match for _me._"

I said before charging at him.

* * *

-Gaara-

I watched as Kimiko charged at Sasuke and they engaged in battle. He'd activated his Sharingan, but it didn't seem to be of any help to him. Kimiko knocked him back into a tree and he glared at her before kicking off from the tree and launching himself at her. She tried to block him, but he knocked her to the ground and pressed a kunai to her throat.

"Kimiko!"

I heard my sister yell, but couldn't look away from the two people infront of me. Just when I was about to send my sand to help her Sasuke cried out and jumped away from her. I saw her get to her feet and rub at her throat where he'd held the kunai to and smirk up at Sasuke who was crouched in a tree holding his left arm. I noticed it was a dark shade of blue, almost purple.

"What the hell did she do to it?"

I heard Kankuro ask, but ignored it when they charged at each other. I saw Kimi do some hand signs and the next thing I know Sasuke is suddenly encased in ice from the neck down.

"The fuck...?"

Sasuke asked and Kimi laughed as she walked closer. She drew a kunai and lifted it to Sasuke's neck and made him tilt his head back.

"Stop acting, I know you're a clone."

She said before stabbing Sasuke in the throat only to prove it was in fact a substitution.

_'But when did he…?'_

**'When he was in the tree.'**

Shukaku answered my unspoken question and my eyes widened a bit when I realized he was right.

"Now you're mine."

I heard someone say from behind me and turned to see Sasuke right behind me with a kunai in hand. He drew his hand back before thrusting it forward to stab me, I was too low on chakra to use my sand to block him. I waited for the pain of the blade piercing through my skin, but there was suddenly a white blur and my eyes widened along with Sasuke's when I saw Kimi standing between me and Sasuke, the kunai he'd meant for me embedded in her stomach.

"Kimiko!"

Temari yelled and Sasuke jumped back.

"You're an idiot. Why protect him? He attacked Sakura and he's from another village."

He said to Kimi who just laughed as she wrapped her hand around the hilt of the kunai in her stomach.

"It's simple really."

She said before her face scrunched up in pain as she pulled the kunai out and threw it to the ground. She lifted her head and stared at Sasuke with determination the only emotion on her face.

"I protect those I hold dear, even at the cost of my life."

She said and I blinked and she suddenly disappeared. I looked around the clearing to try and find her, but she was gone. I suddenly heard her voice fill the clearing.

"Freeze, Ice Plain Jutsu!"

She shouted before suddenly dropping from one of the trees and slamming her hand into the ground. I watched as ice seemed to come out of nowhere and cover the entire clearing, but it seemed to go around me. I looked over at my siblings to see the ground around them was left alone as well.

_'She has remarkable control over her ice.'_

I thought as I watched as she did a hand sign I recognized from our fight as her Ice Clone jutsu. Suddenly, ice shot up from the ground and slowly formed complete duplicates of Kimi. All three drew kunai before rushing as Sasuke. He dodged the first one, but the other two caught him from behind and forced him to the ground. The two clones held him down while Kimi stood over him and signed something I'd never seen before.

"Frozen Prison Jutsu!"

She said when she'd finished signing and spears of ice shot out of the ground to form a type of spiked cage all around Sasuke.

"Let me out of here!"

He cried from inside and I heard him trying to break through the ice, but it didn't do any kind of damage. Kimi's clones disappeared and the ice covering the ground slowly receded except for the bit surrounding Sasuke's prison. I noticed she seemed a little unsteady as she walked towards me and caught her as she started to fall.

"Kimiko!"

Temari and Kankuro shouted as they ran over to us.

"Is she alright?"

Kankuro asked and I looked at Kimi's face before looking down at her stomach. She was bleeding heavily from the wound she'd gotten by protecting me from Sasuke.

"I'm not sure, but we need to bandage her wound."

I said as I laid her on the ground. Temari used a kunai to cut Kimi's shirt up to her ribs, then started to bandage her wound. She winced when Temari applied pressure, but otherwise didn't make a sound.

"There. It's not much, but it'll hold until she can get back to the village and get someone to look at it."

Temari said as she stood up. She looked back at Konoha before looking down at me and Kankuro as we knelt next to Kimi.

"We should get going."

She said and I glared up at her.

"What about Kimi?"

Kankuro asked and Temari sighed.

"We can't take her with us, it'd be considered kidnapping of another village's ninja."

She said and I frowned, but I knew she was right.

"Alright then, let's-"

I said as I got to my feet, but stopped when I felt something grab my leg. I looked down to see Kimi had a hold of my leg, but she was unconscious. I could feel that that last jutsu had drained a great deal of her chakra.

**'It would appear that she doesn't want you to leave her.'**

Shukaku said and I frowned.

_'But I can't take her with us.'_

I said and saw him frown from inside my mind.

**'She just risked her life to save yours. Are you really just going to leave her here, bleeding and wounded for some random Sand or Sound ninja to find and kill? She has told us on several occasions that we are someone she holds dear, are you trying to tell me she isn't someone you care about and hold dear as well?'**

He asked and I couldn't help but mentally smile at his logic. Without another word I bent down and picked her up bridal style. Her head rested on my shoulder and I could feel her breath on my neck.

"Gaara, what are you doing?"

Kankuro asked, but I ignored him and jumped up into the trees. I heard my siblings follow.

"Gaara…"

Temari said and I sighed.

"I'm not going to leave her."

I said as we made our way towards Suna. It looked like Temari was going to argue, but she stopped and just nodded. I looked down at Kimi as she slept in my arms. I couldn't help but want to smile at the feel of her so close, then the fact that she had just risked her life to protect my own made me realize just how dear I held her to my heart. Without me even realizing it I'd grown to care for her. I'd let her in close to my heart even after the betrayal I'd gone through the last time I let someone close. But she was different than the others. Kankuro and Temari understood and cared for me because we were family. Naruto didn't hate me because he was like me and knew what it was like to be hated and alone. But Kimi, she had a past just like mine. She knew what it was like to be feared for something she couldn't control. To be hated for existing just because of what resided within you. She had managed to connect with me on a whole nother level that no one else had and I wanted to protect her and keep her safe for it. I didn't want to lose her now that she'd gotten so close. I loved her.


	16. Chapter 16

-Kimi-

I opened my eyes, but wasn't able to see anything. As my vision adjusted I realized I could hear voices. Distinctively familiar voices that sounded like a certain redheaded hottie and his siblings.

"Why did you bring her with us Gaara? It could be considered kidnapping."

Someone, it sounded like Temari, asked and I slowed my breathing so it would seem like I was still asleep and I closed my eyes again.

"I couldn't just leave her."

I heard Gaara say and wondered exactly what was going on.

"Gaara, you've been acting really weird lately. What's up with you?"

Someone, it sounded like Kankuro this time, asked and I waited for Gaara's response.

"I think I love her."

I couldn't help but freeze at that. I heard his siblings gasp in surprise and start to question him, but I ignored their ramblings as I tried to process what I'd just overheard.

_'He...loves me?'_

I thought in shock and found myself sitting up on the couch I had been laying on and looking around the room. It looked like an office of sorts. When I saw the Kazekage robes in the corner I knew where I was, but the question was why?

**'He does child. I can see it within him, but do you love him in return?'**

Yuu said and I frowned as I thought about it. I couldn't stand the thought of someone hurting him. He was like me and knew what it was like to be hated for what was inside you, but he was also strong and kind despite the things he's done.

_'I...I think I do.'_

I said and saw Yuu smile at me.

**'You've finally realized it, now you just have to tell him.'**

Yuu said and I groaned at that. It was then that I realized the conversation outside of the office I was in had stopped. The door suddenly opened and Gaara walked in, followed by his siblings.

"I see you're awake."

Gaara said simply and I nodded as I looked up at him. I could see the hidden relief in his eyes and smiled to myself.

"What happened? Last thing I remember is imprisoning Sasuke in my Ice, then everything went black."

I said and they all looked anywhere but at me.

"Guys..."

I said slowly and Temari turned to look at me.

"You kinda blacked out and I had to bandage the wound on your abdomen."

She said and I looked down to see my shirt had been ripped and there were fresh linens around my abdomen.

"I changed them a couple of hours ago."

She said, answering my unspoken question.

"Okay."

I said and we fell into a somewhat awkward silence.

"I can see I'm not in the woods or in Konoha, so mind telling me why I'm in Suna?"

I asked and I noticed Temari and Kankuro both turned to look at Gaara who was starting at me.

"Leave."

Gaara said and Temari and Kankuro were out of the room faster than I would have thought possible.

"Oookay."

I said once the door had been shut behind them.

"Are you okay?"

Gaara suddenly asked and I turned to look up at him and was shocked when he knelt down infront of me.

"I..I'm fine."

I said, trying my best not to blush. I hadn't meant to hear his private conversation with his siblings, but now that I had I couldn't get those words out of my head.

"Kimi!"

I looked up into his eyes shocked when he suddenly yelled my name.

"Sorry, what?"

I asked and he frowned at me.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

He asked and I nodded.

"Yeah, I was just thinking of something. How come I'm in Suna?"

I asked, changing the subject and noticed Gaara looked away from me again.

"We were going to go once Temari had bandaged your wound, but you grabbed onto my leg and I couldn't bring myself to just leave you there."

He said and I blinked at him in surprise. He really did care about me.

"Why'd you care so much about me?"

He asked me suddenly and I looked at him confused.

"Because, you're someone special to m-"

"I know, but _why_?"

He asked cutting me off and I looked at him for a second before deciding that actions would speak louder than words at this moment and leaned down towards him since he was still knelt down infront of me and pressed my lips to his. I felt him freeze in shock for a second before he slowly relaxed and I felt his lips start to move against my own.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer to me as I deepened the kiss and smiled when I felt his arms wrap around my waist and pull me down off the couch as his tongue ran over my bottom lip. I pulled back from lack of air and looked into his teal colored eyes.

"Because, I love you too."

I said and he blinked at me in surprise.

"So you were awake."

He said and I smiled sheepishly at him.

"I didn't mean to overhear, but I'm not lying when I say I love you."

I said and he continued to look at me surprised.

"But...why? I don't deser-"

I cut him off by placing my hand over his lips.

"Yes you do. I love you because you know what its like to be hated for something you can't control, wanted to be used as a weapon and treated as a monster instead of a person, but also because you are a strong shinobi and though it may be hard to see, you are kind. I don't care what you've done, because truth be told I've probably done just as bad. I can see the person you want to be Gaara, and I love you for trying to become that person."

I said and he smiled at me, literally smiled, before pulling down my hand and capturing my lips in another kiss.

* * *

A/N: Rather short story, but I think it ended pretty well. I hope you're happy with it Tavi, and I'll try to work on the other story you want me to do as soon as I can, but no promises.


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